ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission how many written parliamentary questions to the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission in the 2005-06 session were not answered wholly or in part on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Peter Viggers: None.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission how many written parliamentary questions to the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation, or similar wording.

Peter Viggers: None.

HEALTH

HIV and AIDS

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed with HIV in each of the last two years; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: There were 7,450 people with newly diagnosed HIV in the United Kingdom in 2005, 7,492 people in 2004 and 7,283 in 2003. This suggests that the annual numbers of new HIV diagnoses may be stabilizing.

Health Trusts: North West

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the effect of the use of the market forces factor in determining the budgets of health trusts in the north west; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The advisory committee on resource allocation has commissioned independent research to inform its recommendations on use of the market forces factor from 2008-09. This will consider options for reducing the variation between different organisations within close proximity, and an alternative approach to calculating the staff element using data on NHS costs.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to increase the level of diabetes screening.

Rosie Winterton: The UK national screening committee has recommended that screening certain subgroups of the population who are at high risk of type 2 diabetes is feasible, but that it should be undertaken as part of an integrated programme to detect and manage cardiovascular risk factors. Officials are currently considering the implications of these recommendations.

Stem Cell Research

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on Government policy on stem cell research.

Patricia Hewitt: In March 2005, the Government established the UK stem cell initiative to develop a strategy for stem cell research up to 2015. UKSCI made 11 recommendations. All were accepted by the Government, who allocated an additional £50 million, doubling their total investment, for stem cell research between 2006-08.

Mental Health

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she expects the introduction of supervised community treatment to improve the care of patients with mental health problems.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the likely impact of supervised community treatment on the care of patients with mental health problems.

Rosie Winterton: We are introducing supervised community treatment for patients who have been detained in hospital under the mental health legislation. This is an important change which brings legislation into line with modern service delivery and follows the example of modern practice in other countries around the world.

Carers

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to support those with caring responsibilities; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: Building on the carers strategy that we published in 1999, we have announced in 'Our Health, Our Care, Our Say' a range of measures to support carers.

Influenza Pandemic

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made in preparations for dealing with an influenza pandemic.

Rosie Winterton: The World Health Organisation has praised the UK Influenza Pandemic Contingency Plan, which is currently being revised to include wider areas of national planning.
	We aim to ensure all areas of our planning reflect expert advice and international scientific consensus. In particular, we continue to work closely with all NHS organisations, already have a stockpile of 14.6 million treatment courses of antivirals, and we are stockpiling 3.3 million doses of H5N1 vaccines.

A and E: Greater London

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of accident and emergency departments being re-graded in Greater London.

Rosie Winterton: Any changes to the provision of emergency care facilities, including accident and emergency departments, are matters for the NHS locally. However, I understand there are likely to be changes to some A and E departments in London as part of reconfiguration proposals to be brought forward, but at present there is no specific number. Any changes to A and E departments will only be made following full consultation with local stakeholders.

Colchester Hospitals

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will visit Colchester to discuss the provision of hospital facilities in the town.

Andy Burnham: The Secretary of State has no immediate plans to visit Colchester general hospital. However, should the chair of the hospital board wish to invite a Minister to visit it would be given due consideration.

Clear Communications Consultants

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what contracts her Department has with Clear Communications Consultants Ltd; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has made no payments to Clear Communications.

Consultants

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which 10 consultancy fees charged to her Department since May 1997 were the most expensive.

Ivan Lewis: The Department does not collect data on this basis and the analysis required could be undertaken only at disproportionate cost.

Continuing Care

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what her Department's definition is of continuing care for the purpose of deciding whether patients can continue to receive care from the NHS;
	(2)  what advice her Department gives to  (a) hospital trusts,  (b) primary care trusts and  (c) social services departments on the definition of continuing care.

Ivan Lewis: Continuing care means care provided over an extended period of time to a person aged 18 or over to meet physical or mental health needs which have arisen as the result of disability, accident or illness.
	The Department has run a consultation exercise to produce a new national framework for national health service continuing healthcare and NHS funded nursing care. The consultation ran from 19 June 2006 to 22 September 2006 and we are now considering the responses we received to the consultation. The new framework will promote fair and consistent access to NHS funding across England, irrespective of location, diagnosis or personal circumstances. Transitional guidance on continuing care was issued, to both the NHS and local authorities, on 16 October 2006.
	Following the judgement in R (Grogan)  v. Bexley NHS Care Trust, the Department published guidance to help strategic health authorities examine the criteria they use to determine continuing care eligibility, and the Department also published transitional guidance on continuing care, on16 October 2006, to cover the period between the SHA reorganisation and the implementation of the national framework. Both sets of guidance were made available on the Department's website and are accessible to all the organisations mentioned in the question.

Cystic Fibrosis

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what research her Department has carried out into the relative benefits of  (a) preventative treatment and  (b) treatment once infection has been detected for cystic fibrosis sufferers; what guidance has been issued to hospitals in light of that research; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what level of funding has been allocated to preventative treatment programmes for cystic fibrosis sufferers in  (a) west Sussex and  (b) the south-east of England in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) 2007-08.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 7 December 2006
	We are not aware of any research conducted by the Department into the benefits of preventative treatment for infections in those with cystic fibrosis. However, there is a large body of research and clinical guidance, published in this country and abroad, which supports the effectiveness of preventative treatment programmes to clear airways and teach breathing techniques in the management of this condition.
	Information on expenditure levels for CF preventative treatment programmes is not collected centrally. Funding for these services is provided through practice-based commissioning, primary care trust commissioning or specialised commissioning groups.

Cystic Fibrosis

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support her Department gives to preventative treatment programmes for cystic fibrosis sufferers; what input her Department has had on the current consultation at the Royal Alexandra hospital for Sick Children in Brighton on the future of the preventative treatment programme at that establishment; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 7 December 2006
	We are not aware of any research conducted by the Department into the benefits of preventative treatment for infections in those with cystic fibrosis. However, there is a large body of research and clinical guidance, published in this country and aboard, which supports the effectiveness of preventative treatment programmes to clear airways and teach breathing techniques in the management of this condition.
	The consultation at the Royal Alexandra children's hospital in Brighton is a local matter.

Delayed Discharges Reimbursement Scheme

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what payments NHS organisations have received from local authority social services departments under the delayed discharges reimbursement scheme in each financial year since 2003-04, broken down by local authority.

Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not available.

Departmental Commercial Director

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the move of the Department's commercial director to a private sector appointment is subject to any  (a) Civil Service rules and  (b) contractual obligations aimed at preventing (i) conflicts of interest and (ii) unfair advantage.

Ivan Lewis: All civil servants must obtain Government approval before taking any form of full, part-time or fee-paid employment in the United Kingdom, or overseas in a public or private company or in the service of a foreign government or its agencies. This rule also applies to former civil servants within two years of leaving Crown employment.
	Under the rules on the acceptance of outside appointments by Crown servants, Ken Anderson applied for permission to accept the private sector appointment. The Prime Minister, on the advice of the advisory committee on business appointments, approved the application subject to the conditions that, for 12 months from his last day of service, he should stand aside from any discussion, if any, of the business of UBS or its clients relating to Government or national health service contracts in the United Kingdom health sector and should not become personally involved in lobbying the Department or the NHS on behalf of UBS or its clients.

Hospital Schemes

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospital schemes with a capital value of £29.7 million or over have been built since 1997, broken down by parliamentary constituency.

Ivan Lewis: The information is in the following table
	
		
			  Constituency( 1)  Trust  Capital value  (£ million at 2006-07 prices) 
			 Copeland North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 82 
			 Dartford Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust 116 
			 Chesham and Amersham Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust 55 
			 Greenwich and Woolwich Queen Elizabeth NHS Trust 115 
			 City of Durham County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 75 
			 Halifax Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust 77 
			 Wythenshawe and Sale East University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust 80 
			 Norwich South Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Trust 194 
			 Hereford Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust 77 
			 Chipping Barnet Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 65 
			 Worcester Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 104 
			 Bishop Aukland County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 56 
			 Camberwell and Peckham King's College Hospitals NHS Trust 89 
			 South Swindon Swindon and Marlborough NHS Trust 118 
			 Leeds North East Leeds Mental Health Teaching Hospital NHS Trust 55 
			 Orpington Bromley Hospitals NHS Trust 141 
			 Reading West Berkshire Healthcare NHS Trust 34 
			 Brentford and Isleworth West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 70 
			 Middlesbrough South Tees Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 143 
			 Tooting St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 54 
			 Gloucester Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 35 
			 Dudley North Dudley Group of Hospitals NHS Trust 155 
			 Holborn and St. Pancras University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 489 
			 Brent North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 74 
			 Across Many Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership 89 
			 Blackburn East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust 117 
			 Coventry North East University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust 416 
			 Sheffield Hallam Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 29 
			 Reading East Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust 104 
			 Vauxhall Guys and St. Thomas Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 101 
			 Stoke-on-Trent Central North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust 33 
			 Hexham Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 33 
			 South West Surrey Surrey Primary Care NHS Trust 33 
			 Putney Wandsworth Primary Care NHS Trust 79 
			 Aylesbury Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust 49 
			 Wansbeck Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Trust 33 
			 Burnley East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust 32 
			 West Ham Newham University Hospital NHS Trust 59 
			 Ribble Valley Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 44 
			 Wolverhampton North East Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust 61 
			 Regent's Park and Kensington North Central and North West London Mental Health NHS Trust 38 
			 Hendon Barnet Primary Care NHS Trust 45 
			 Bracknell West London Mental Health NHS Trust 40 
			 Bethnell Green and Bow East London and The City Mental Health NHS Trust 37 
			 Plymouth, Devonport Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 32 
			 Blackpool South Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre NHS Trust 48 
			 Southampton, Test Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 57 
			 (1 )These are the constituencies principally affected by the scheme i.e. those containing a significant element of new build or refurbishment.

Incontinence

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what treatments for incontinence are available on the NHS;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the number of incontinent patients in each primary care trust for each of the last five years.

Ivan Lewis: Treatments ranging, for example, from pelvic floor exercises up to and including surgical interventions such as colposuspension for urinary incontinence are available on the national health service.
	We have no estimate of the number of people who have experienced problems with continence or what proportion of those seek professional advice. The Continence Foundation has estimated that one person in three experiences a problem at some point in their life.

Independent Sector Treatment Centres

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which local stakeholders are required to be consulted on the need for each elective independent sector treatment centre; and what the timetable is for the update of her Department's analysis and reconfirmation of support by the local strategic health authority before the final business case approval and contract signature of each centre, as referred to in paragraph 66 of the Government response to the Health Committee's report on independent sector treatment centres, Cm 6930.

Ivan Lewis: The Department maintains an ongoing dialogue with relevant stakeholders across the phase two independent sector treatment centre programme. On each of the electives scheme there is engagement with the relevant strategic health authority. In turn the SHA will ensure the engagement of key stakeholders including local national health service organisations. SHAs are engaged at various times throughout the procurement process, for example, at preferred bidder stage and at the completion of commercial negotiations, to confirm local support and commitment.
	Each scheme has an indicative timetable for reaching the selection of preferred bidder, the close of commercial negotiations, the signature of the contract and the commencement of service delivery. Those dates are necessarily indicative only and are constantly reviewed in light of changing circumstances.

Independent Sector Treatment Centres

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what risk assessment she has carried out of the financial effect on the local health economy of the proposed independent sector treatment centre in Southampton; and if she will place a copy of the assessment in the Library.

Ivan Lewis: This is a matter for the local national health service in Southampton. The financial impact on the local health economy of the proposed independent sector treatment centre has been considered by local primary care trusts as part of their local delivery planning process.
	The provision of non-complex elective services at the Southampton ISTC is an integral component of the greater Southampton health plan which was developed and agreed by all local NHS organisations in south-west Hampshire with the involvement of key stakeholders.
	This increased ISTC provision allows, for example, for the renewal and expansion of tertiary and specialist services, including critical care, at the Southampton universities hospital NHS trust in line with the trust's strategy "2020 Vision".

Infant Deaths

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many infant deaths per 1,000 live births there were in each three-year period since 1978 to 1980 in  (a) England and  (b) among the routine and manual groups used for the purposes of assessing progress towards her Department's target to reduce health inequalities.

John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 9 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question asking how many infant deaths per 1,000 live births there were in each three-year period since 1978 to 1980 in (a) England and (b) amongst the routine and manual groups used for the purpose of assessing progress towards the Department's target to reduce health inequalities. (109632)
	(a) Infant mortality rates in England for years since 1978 are routinely published in Table 2.1 of Health Statistics Quarterly which can be accessed using the following link:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/HSQ32.pdf
	(b) Infant mortality rates in the routine and manual group are not available prior to 1997. This is because until 2000 infant mortality rates were published by Social Class based on father's occupation. The nearest equivalent Social Class groups prior to 1997 are not comparable see background note 5. In 2001 Social Class was replaced by the National Statistics Socio-economic Classification (NS-SEC), and since then infant mortality figures have been published by NS-SEC. It is not possible to use NS-SEC for data prior to 2001 because there is not a one-to-one equivalence with the Social Class classification; an approximation is used, referred to as NS-SEC90 because it is based on the 1990 occupational classification. NS-SEC90 is used specifically to aid interpretation of trends over time in infant mortality and was calculated back to 1997.
	The table below shows infant mortality rates in England and Wales from 1997-1999 to 2003-2005, for the routine and manual group and for all births inside marriage/joint registrations. We provide data for England and Wales as progress on the infant mortality target is assessed using these data as figures for the routine and manual group for England alone are not readily available.
	
		
			  Infant mortality rates( 1)  by National Statistics Socio-economic Classification (NS-SEC)( 2) , England and Wales, 1997-2005 
			   Routine and manual occupations  All( 3) 
			  NS-SEC90   
			 1997-99 6.3 5.6 
			 1998-2000 6.2 5.4 
			 1999-2001 6.2 5.3 
			
			  NS-SEC   
			 1999-2001 6.2 5.3 
			 2000-02 6.0 5.2 
			 2001-03 6.0 5.0 
			 2002-04 5.9 4.9 
			 2003-05 5.7 4.8 
			 (1) Deaths under 1 year of age per 1,000 live births (2) NS-SEC is used for 2001 onwards; NS-SEC90 is used for years 1997-2001 (3) Infants born inside marriage or outside marriage jointly registered by both parents  Source: ONS

Leak Inquiries

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions her Department has conducted a leak inquiry since May 1997; what the subjects of those leak inquiries were; and who authorised each inquiry.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has conducted 66 inquiries since May 1997. It has been the practice of successive governments not to comment on the subject or outcome of leak inquiries as there is a continued necessity to safeguard security and investigative arrangements.

Marginal Constituencies

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has held with the Labour party chair and Minister without Portfolio on the impact of health service closures on marginal constituencies.

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has held with the Labour party chair and Minister without Portfolio on the impact of health service closures on marginal constituencies.

Ivan Lewis: I refer the hon. Members to the reply given on 5 December 2006,  Official Report, column 382W.

NHS: IT Programme

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will conduct a zero-based review of the NHS IT programme.

Andy Burnham: As recently as June 2006 the National Audit Office published its report and findings of a value for money study of the national programme for information technology in the national health service. We therefore do not believe a further review of this kind would be helpful at this time.
	The Health Select Committee has indicated that it intends to undertake an inquiry in 2007 into aspects of IT in the NHS. We look forward to co-operating with the Committee in this regard in due course.

NHS: Local Monitoring

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will give local involvement networks the power to inspect and monitor the NHS.

Rosie Winterton: Local involvement networks (LINks) will have the powers to enter health and social care premises to observe and assess the nature and quality of services they provide. There will be full consultation on how these powers can be most effective and what exemptions are necessary to protect vulnerable people.

NHS Identity

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 6 December 2006,  Official Report, column 562W, on NHS identity, who the recipients were of expenditure on managing NHS identity.

Ivan Lewis: The recipients of expenditure on managing NHS identity are listed as follows.
	Bang Creative
	B&B Press
	Capture
	Celsur Plastics
	Central Office of Information
	Cherry Print Ltd.
	Chloe Hall Photographer
	Citigate Lloyd Northover
	Communisis One
	Cragg Ross Dawson
	CW Print Group
	Design Icon
	Dr. Foster
	European Hi Speed Ltd
	Gargoyle Graphics
	Geronimo
	GJ Plastics
	Guidelines storage
	Healthcare Events
	Information Display Services Ltd.
	The Kings Fund
	Mailing guidelines
	Marketplace Design
	Martinjohn Associates
	Masson Seeley
	Medianotes
	MORI
	Multiples Medway
	Natural Design
	Olivier Mythodrama
	Plain English Campaign
	The Patent Office
	Richard Edward Ltd.
	RS Live
	Smith Creative
	Sunshine Promotions
	Sweeny Comms
	The Team
	Waiting Information Services
	Woodway Group
	Wragge and Co. law firm

North West London Hospitals NHS Trust

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what her estimate is of the projected financial position for 2006-07 of the North West London Hospitals NHS Trust.

Ivan Lewis: As published on the 9 November 2006, in our national health service financial performance report, at the end of quarter 2, 2006-07, North West London Hospitals NHS Trust is forecasting a financial year end deficit of £29.7 million.

North West London Hospitals NHS Trust

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff posts were lost at the North West London NHS Hospitals Trust in 2005-06; and how many have been lost in 2006-07.

Ivan Lewis: This information is not collected centrally.

Parliamentary Questions

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will answer the question tabled by the hon. Member for Eddisbury on 20 November 2006, reference 102662, on the child health interim application.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 18 December 2006
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 20 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 25-26W.

Prisoner Suicides

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what her most recent estimate is of the number of prisoners who committed suicide within one year of release from prison in the last period for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: Research undertaken to investigate suicide rates in recently released prisoners in England and Wales between 2000 and 2002(1) showed that 382 suicides occurred from a group of 244,988 individuals within one year of release from prison; a suicide rate of 156 per 100,000 person-years. 79 (21 per cent.) of these suicides occurred within the first 28 days after release. In all age groups, suicide rates were higher in recently released prisoners than in the general population.
	 Source:
	(1) Suicide in recently released prisoners: a population-based cohort study. The Lancet, Volume 368, Issue 9530, Pages 119-123 D. Pratt, M. Piper, L Appleby, R. Webb, J. Shaw

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer from the Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office to the hon. Member for Blackpool South of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on the retirement age, what her Department's policy is for the setting of retirement ages for staff below the senior civil service under the Civil Service (Management Functions) Act 1992.

Ivan Lewis: Since 1 October 2006, the Department has adopted the default retirement age of 65 for all staff. Any request to work beyond age 65 would be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Thalidomide

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has had with Chemie Grunenthal on obtaining payment for British victims of thalidomide.

Ivan Lewis: We have not held discussions with Chemie Grunenthal, the original developer of thalidomide. Distillers Biochemicals Limited was the original United Kingdom licensee of the product and the company and its successors have made payments to people affected by thalidomide through the Thalidomide Trust, established in 1973.

TRANSPORT

Crossrail

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether Crossrail plans to install new machines that will  (a) accept Oyster cards and  (b) have Oyster card readers at all of its stations.

Tom Harris: I have no specific information about Oyster cards at present. However, Crossrail is required to provide a fare collection system which uses stored value cards and pre-paid tickets and is consistent with the systems used by the National Railway and Transport for London. The fare collection system will also be fully integrated into the Network Rail and TfL Travelcard programme.

Freight

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of  (a) the amount (i) weight and (ii) value of freight entering the country in ports south of Birmingham with eventual destinations in the north of England and  (b) the number of lorry miles transporting such freight.

Stephen Ladyman: In 2005, 109 million tonnes of goods on foreign routes entered ports in the south of England between Boston and Sharpness. Information is not available on the value of these goods, their destination, or the number of lorry miles travelled.
	 Source:
	Port freight statistics collected by DfT

Parking Regimes

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what budget provision his Department has made for the  (a) hardware and  (b) software needs of local authorities in relation to the introduction of new parking regimes.

Gillian Merron: The Department's draft regulatory impact assessment, as amended following consultation in July this year, makes clear that there may be some up front costs for the transition from decriminalised parking enforcement to civil parking enforcement. These costs include training and IT costs. Under CPE, as with DPE, local authorities will be able to cover the costs of their enforcement activity through income from parking charges and any parking penalty charges. Any deficits in the financial year can be covered from the general fund and repaid in subsequent years.

Public Transport

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much money his Department spent on each form of public transport in Essex in each of the last 10 years.

Gillian Merron: The information is as follows:
	 Buses
	The majority of support for local bus services is provided by local authorities using the Government's revenue support grant. It is for each authority to decide how much of their RSG allocation to devote to bus support.
	The following table shows payments to Essex county council under the Department's bus grant schemes, introduced in 1998.
	
		
			   Bus( 1 ) (£ million) 
			 1996-97 0 
			 1997-98 0 
			 1998-99 1.46 
			 1999-2000 1.17 
			 2000-01 1.32 
			 2001-02 1.97 
			 2002-03 1.91 
			 2003-04 2.37 
			 2004-05 2.69 
			 2005-06 2.40 
			 (1) The Department's bus grant schemes are Rural Bus Subsidy Grant, Rural and Urban Bus Challenge and Kickstart. 
		
	
	In addition, the Department pays bus service operators grant to operators of local bus services throughout the country but information on this expenditure is not collected on a county basis.
	Local authorities also receive funding from the Department under the local transport plan system for capital expenditure on local transport, a significant proportion of which spending assists the provision of bus services.
	 Rail
	The Department provides funding both to Network Rail and to train operating companies. Such funding in either category that would relate specifically to Essex is not readily distinguishable. The following TOCs currently provide or have historically provided passenger services to destinations in Essex:
	One
	c2c
	WAGN
	Great Eastern
	Anglia
	Information concerning the subsidies paid to/premia payments received from all TOCs is included in the national rail trends publication from the Office of Rail Regulation. It should be noted again that this does not, however, separately allocate funding to specific counties within each TOC.

Rail Franchises

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish  (a) the cost benefit analysis and  (b) the appraisal summary table taking account of the five objectives outlined in the new approach to appraisal prepared by his Department prior to (i) the award of the Greater Western franchise, (ii) the award of the South Western Trains franchise, (iii) the specification for the new cross country franchise and (iv) recent announcements by the Association of Train Operating Companies of fare increases.

Tom Harris: The Department for Transport addresses the five objectives outlined in the new approach to transport appraisal in preparing the specification included in the invitation to tender for franchise replacements. The specification is the basis upon which bids are assessed, and the submission of the successful bidder needs to demonstrate that it represents value for money.
	The business case analysis that supports the development of the franchise specifications is not published, although the rationale behind changes is communicated through stakeholder meetings and stakeholder briefing documents.
	The decision has been taken to maintain the status quo in relation to fares policy with an average increase of RPI+1 per cent. for regulated fares. It is for individual train operators to set regulated fares within the constraints imposed by regulation, while unregulated fares may be set on a commercial basis. The Department does not appraise the decisions that individual train operators make.

Rail Franchises

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the new approach to appraisal is routinely applied when his Department specifies and awards rail franchises.

Tom Harris: The Department for Transport routinely applies recognised appraisal methods in the specifying and awarding of rail franchises that are consistent with the new approach to transport appraisal.

Railways

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of  (a) the reasons for the change in the numbers of public accidental fatalities on the railways since 2004 and  (b) the projected figures for future years produced by the Office of the Railway Regulator.

Tom Harris: Numbers of fatalities and the causes for 2004 and 2005 are given in the annual reports on rail safety published by the Health and Safety Executive for 2004 and the Office of Rail Regulation for 2005. Copies are in the House Library. The annual report for 2006 will be published by ORR in the spring of 2007.
	ORR does not publish indicative trends for the future.

Railways

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the  (a) location,  (b) value and  (c) purchaser of land are of buildings that (i) Network Rail and (ii) Railtrack has sold since May 1997.

Tom Harris: The disposal of Network Rail's land and property is an operational matter for Network Rail, in accordance with the licence condition introduced by the rail regulator in November 2001. The hon. Member should contact Network Rail's chief Executive at the following address for a response to his question.
	John Armitt
	Chief Executive
	Network Rail
	40 Melton Street
	London NW1 2EE

Railways

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to his Answer of 30 November 2006,  Official Report, column 10W, on railways, if he will bring forward plans to run 24-hour train services  (a) on lines that serve major cities and  (b) on other lines.

Tom Harris: We do not currently propose to advance such plans.

Stations

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will assess the merits of installing stair lifts to give access to  (a) Leominster station and  (b) other stations; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: Passenger stair lifts can provide an alternative means of access to railway platforms for people with reduced mobility unable to manage stairs. They must be staff operated and can only be used when they do not pose a safety risk.
	While such solutions can be appropriate in some public buildings such as libraries, stair lifts are not generally suitable for a station environment where the flows of people are likely to be significant. They are also open to misuse and vandalism.
	However, the Department may exceptionally grant a dispensation from "Train and Station Services for Disabled Passengers: A Code of Practice" where a station operator can demonstrate that it would be appropriate in the particular circumstances to provide a stair lift. Some of the factors that would be considered are the flows of passengers and availability of appropriately trained staff to operate the lift. If such a dispensation request is submitted for Leominster station, or any other station, it will be considered on its merits.

Tyne and Wear PTA

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions have taken place between his Department and the Department for Communities and Local Government on the spending against budget of the Tyne and Wear passenger transport authority and its concessionary travel schemes.

Gillian Merron: The Department has had a number of discussions with the Department for Communities and Local Government concerning the distribution of funding for the statutory minimum concessionary travel scheme and its impact on local authorities, including those in Tyne and Wear. This includes both the additional funding for the recent improvement in the statutory minimum from 1 April 2006 and the new funding earmarked for the new bus concession which will be implemented from April 2008.

Warrington Bank Quay Station

Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that Warrington Bank Quay station has adequate  (a) car parking facilities,  (b) disabled parking facilities,  (c) bus stops and  (d) taxi stops for it to fulfill its strategic position as a major main line station.

Tom Harris: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The Department is currently working with Network Rail and Virgin Trains to develop plans for the expansion of car parking at Warrington Bank Quay Station, commensurate with the introduction of service improvements in December 2008.
	Virgin Trains also has plans to improve the station forecourt to improve vehicle circulation, provide parking for disabled passengers and create passenger set down facilities. Other improvements to the ticket office area and subway are also proposed and these schemes are currently subject to a funding application.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many written parliamentary questions to the House of Commons Commission in the 2005-06 session were not answered wholly or in part on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Nick Harvey: No parliamentary questions to the House of Commons Commission in the 2005-06 session were unanswered wholly or in part on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many written parliamentary questions to the House of Commons Commission in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation, or similar wording.

Nick Harvey: No written parliamentary questions to the House of Commons Commission in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation, or similar wording.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bat Licences

Christopher Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many churches have applied to his Department for bat licences in the last five years; and how many were successfully granted a licence.

Barry Gardiner: The number of bat licences applied for by churches and issued under Regulation 44(2)(e) of the Conservation (Natural Habitats) Regulations 1994 in the last five years is shown in the table as follows.
	
		
			   Number of applications  Number of licences issued 
			 2002 10 10 
			 2003 15 14 
			 2004 8 8 
			 2005 13 13 
			 2006 (1)17 13 
			 (1 )Four applications pending decision.

Bees

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the  (a) familiar sunshiner,  (b) banded mining bee,  (c) eight-spotted wasp-hoverfly,  (d) Rosser's sac spider,  (e) Pashford pot beetle,  (f) Sussex diving beetle,  (g) Brighton wainscot,  (h) bordered gothic, and  (j) orange upperwing are (i) extinct and (ii) extant in the UK.

Barry Gardiner: None of the species listed is considered to be extinct, though they are all thought to be close to it. All 10 are listed as priority Biodiversity Action Plan species and are still under investigation.
	The current known situation of these species is as tabled:
	
		
			  Name  Extant (last record) 
			  (a) familiar sunshiner 1988 
			  (b) banded mining bee 1996 
			  (c) eight-spotted wasp-hoverfly 2003 
			  (d) Rosser's sac spider 2000 
			  (e) Pashford pot beetle 2000 
			  (f) Sussex diving beetle 2002 
			  (g) Brighton wainscot 2001 
			  (h) bordered gothic 2003 
			  (j) orange upperwing 2006

Bovine Cohort Culling

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department has taken to implement  (a) the strategic goals of the TSE road-map and  (b) the goals relating to cohort culling in bovine animals; what recent discussions he has had with European Union counterparts on (i) the strategic goals and (ii) the goals relating to cohort killing in bovine animals; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: DEFRA participates in regular meetings with the European Commission and other member states through the Commission's Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Working Group, which meets approximately every two months. DEFRA also attends the Commission's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, which meets approximately every two weeks.
	An amendment to Commission Decision 999/2001, enabling member states to apply for a derogation to allow the culling of cohorts to be deferred until the end of their productive lives, will come into force later this month. However, we would need to consider carefully whether to apply for such a derogation. Any changes to bovine spongiform encephalopathy control legislation must be carried out on the basis of a thorough risk assessment, based on sound science. It is unlikely that any change could be made before 2008 at the earliest. Meanwhile, we are required to enforce the legislation that is currently in place.

Bovine TB

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of the tests for bovine TB are carried out through the application of gamma interferon vaccine.

Ben Bradshaw: The primary screening test for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in cattle in Great Britain and the EU is the single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin (SICCT) test, which is commonly known as the tuberculin "skin test".
	On 23 October 2006, the Government introduced a new policy designed to improve the testing of cattle for bTB, by extending the use of the gamma interferon (g-IFN) diagnostic blood test, alongside the skin test, in certain prescribed circumstances. An estimated 45,000 to 50,000 g-IFN tests may be undertaken each year, depending on circumstances arising in the field. As about 4.8 million skin tests are undertaken annually, approximately one per cent. of tests for bTB will be carried out through application of the g-IFN test.

Bovine TB

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the final report of the Independent Scientific Group on bovine TB is expected.

Ben Bradshaw: The Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB will publish its final report in the spring of this year.

Carbon Emissions

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how aircraft carbon emissions attributed to the United Kingdom are estimated; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: Emissions of carbon dioxide from aviation are reported in submissions to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
	In accordance with internationally agreed guidelines, the UK estimates emissions from both domestic and international aviation, including from military aviation. However, emissions from international aviation are recorded as a memo item, and are not included in national totals.
	Emissions of carbon dioxide are estimated using aircraft movement data and the carbon contents of the fuels the aircraft consume. The current method estimates emissions from the number of aircraft movements broken down by aircraft type at each UK airport, and so complies with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Tier 3 (top tier) specification. The carbon contents of aviation fuels are estimated through periodic analyses of the aviation fuels produced.

Climate Change

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he last met representatives of leading businesses to discuss climate change.

Ian Pearson: DEFRA Ministers have regular meetings with business representatives to discuss climate change, including meetings with the Confederation of British Industry and the Corporate Leaders Group.
	Internationally, the UK has partnered with the World Economic Forum and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development to encourage more business input to international climate change policies. The Secretary of State will be attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos from 24 to 28 January where he will address chief executives from leading businesses on climate change.

Departmental Energy Efficiency

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to encourage other Government Departments to adopt a policy of switching off computers at night.

Ian Pearson: Departments are committed to meet the sustainable operations targets on energy efficiency and carbon emissions that were announced in 2006. The targets are "outcome focussed", and in order to meet them Departments are encouraged to put in place the most suitable means to attain them, which would include making sure computers are switched off at night. It is also mandatory for Departments to work with the Carbon Trust to identify energy savings and, when purchasing computer equipment, to do so in line with "Quick Wins" product standards, which specify only energy-efficient computers and monitors.
	As well as routinely running staff awareness programmes, DEFRA are currently investigating the use of a tool to automatically shut down inactive computers at night.
	Departmental performance against central Government estate targets, including carbon emissions and energy efficiency, is scrutinised in annual reports by the Sustainable Development Commission, the independent watchdog. The latest report is available at http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/watchdog.

Departmental Energy Policy

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his estimate is of the amount of carbon produced by his Department in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 9 October 2006,  Official Report, column 196W.

Energy Using Products Directive

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made in  (a) bringing forward regulations under the eco-design for energy-using products framework directive and  (b) discussions with retailers and manufacturers on the process for removing inefficient lighting products from shelves in advance of the introduction of regulations.

Ian Pearson: The eco-design for energy-using products (EUP) framework directive requires the European Commission, in consultation with member states, accession countries, industry and other interested parties to bring forward a three-year work plan by July 2007. In the interim, the Commission has committed to bring forward proposals for implementing measures following the priorities in the EU Climate Change Programme. 14 product studies are currently under way, with a further six due to start before June 2007. These studies will provide the basis for decisions as to whether the products should be subject to mandatory implementing measures under the EUP directive. The products currently being studied include televisions, motors, domestic cold appliances, plus a study on standby.
	The Government's Market Transformation Programme is engaged with the project teams carrying out the studies to provide detailed information and advice from the UK's perspective. This will help to make sure the studies are robust and comprehensive. As a result of pressure from the UK and other member states, the Commission has recently agreed to "fast-track" a study on simple set-top boxes, while respecting the terms of the directive.
	The Government's Energy Review, published on 11 July 2006, clarified our intention to work with other governments, manufacturers and retailers to phase out the least efficient light bulbs. There are ongoing discussions between the Government and the Lighting Association and retailers about the best way to achieve this.

Environment Agency

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps have been taken by the Environment Agency to update the 1997 guidance on requirements for authorisation for disposal facilities on land for low and intermediate level radioactive waste.

Ian Pearson: The Environment Agency, together with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Environment and Heritage Service (Northern Ireland), has embarked on a programme to review the 1997 guidance. The agencies are currently working to prepare draft guidance documents for public consultation in early 2008, so that final versions can be ready later that year. We envisage that two separate documents will be issued, one dealing with deep geological disposal of the more highly radioactive and longer-lived wastes and the other with near-surface disposal of the remaining types of radioactive wastes.

European Parliament

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make representations to his counterparts in the EU to end the two sittings of the European Parliament in Brussels and Strasbourg on environmental grounds.

Ian Pearson: It is up to the Members of the European Parliament to take any decisions on their working practices.

Farming: Methane Reductions

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to help UK farmers to reduce emissions of methane through  (a) increasing milk yields,  (b) promoting advanced food types and feeding regimes and  (c) aiding research into (i) the use of probiotics and (ii) other proposed solutions.

Ian Pearson: DEFRA announced a £750,000 investment in research on ruminant nutrition regimes to reduce methane and nitrogen emissions in December 2006. This research project will build on our knowledge base and take an integrated approach to the development of ruminant nutrition regimes to deliver reductions in total greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane, per animal and per unit of meat and milk output. Approaches for consideration include the modification of forage based diets, alterations to concentrate feed formulation and ingredients, and feed supplements. All options and solutions will be looked at.
	This research builds on a wealth of past work, where MAFF and DEFRA have invested in research to improve the productivity of dairy cattle. The resulting increases in individual cow milk yields can reduce methane emissions per unit of milk produced. The DEFRA research has included for example developing grass varieties that are high in sugar and lead indirectly to a reduction in methane emissions. Complementary private sector research, including research sponsored by DEFRA through our Sustainable Livestock LINK Programme, has raised the efficiency of dairy production.
	The Government are also developing a strategy on anaerobic digestion (AD), a system that can be used to capture and utilise methane emissions from livestock wastes, thereby helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. AD is particularly applicable and effective on dairy units, and provides a potential source of renewable energy and heat.

Foundation Degrees

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of funding received from the Higher Education Funding Council for England for the validation of foundation degrees is retained by each awarding university; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: I have been asked to reply.
	Franchising arrangements involving the validation of foundation degrees by awarding universities can provide opportunities to build effective links between different types of institution and we expect many such arrangements to continue in future. We do not hold data centrally on the proportion of HEFCE funding retained by individual validating institutions but the proportion is likely to vary to reflect, among other things, the variety in the division of responsibilities between higher education institutions and further education colleges, and the different levels of service that the former may offer the latter.

Global Carbon Emissions

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the contribution to global carbon emissions deriving from the burning of forests in South East Asia for the purposes of creating agricultural land; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The Stern Review says that around 18 per cent. of global greenhouse gas emissions come from deforestation, and highlights the importance of reducing deforestation as part of the global effort to combat climate change.
	In South East Asia, particularly Indonesia, there has been an observed increase in use of fire in land management (via slash-and-burn agriculture) and for large-scale conversion of primary and secondary forests into permanent agriculture or tree plantations.
	There is a pressing need to find effective ways to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from deforestation, not only to tackle climate change but also because of the co-benefits to communities dependent on forests and for biodiversity. The UK Government's policy is that emissions reductions from reduced deforestation should be part of developing countries' participation in climate change agreements and our strategy to achieve this is to participate actively in the climate negotiations and associated technical discussions that can bring it about.
	The UK has also supported action to improve forest governance through the work of the Department for International Development (DfID). For example, DFID's Multistakeholder Forestry Programme in Indonesia is supporting civil society-government partnerships, to change the way in which forestry policies are made and address tenure rights for forest-dependent people. This means giving a stronger voice to local citizens and a higher priority to environmental sustainability.
	In 2002 the UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Indonesia that commits both governments to work together to tackle illegal logging and the associated trade in timber between the two countries. In January 2006, new funding of £24 million over five years to tackle illegal logging and underlying governance problems was announced. This will focus on tropical countries in Africa and Asia.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to encourage people to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

Ian Pearson: Approximately 40 per cent. of carbon dioxide emissions in the UK stem from actions taken by individuals. We each therefore have a crucial role in tackling climate change.
	DEFRA works through the Climate Change Communications Initiative to raise awareness and understanding of climate change and its impacts. In particular, the initiative aims to provide people with the advice and encouragement they need to think and act in a more sustainable way.
	DEFRA also provides funding of around £27 million a year to the Energy Saving Trust (EST) to support its work in promoting energy efficiency in the household sector. EST's activities aim to raise awareness and provide advice on specific measures designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
	DEFRA has developed a guide to greener living, which is available through the internet. This provides information and practical advice to help members of the public reduce their environmental impact. The guidance is available at:
	http://www.direct.gov.uk/EnvironmentAndGreenerLiving/GreenerLivingAQuickGuide/IntroductionArticles/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=10041088&chk=nj1khM
	DEFRA is developing further tools, such as a carbon calculator, to provide people with clear and reliable information about the climate impacts of different actions and choices. We also plan to launch a consultation on a code of best practice for offsetting products, to give people greater confidence that these products are effective.

Hurricanes and Tornadoes

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many injuries there were as a result of tornadoes in each year for which figures are available; what costs were incurred due to tornadoes in each year; what assessment he has made of the likely effect of climate change on those numbers in future years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many tornadoes were recorded in each region in each year for which figures are available; and what effect he expects climate change to have on the number in future years;
	(3)  what research has been  (a) conducted and  (b) funded by his Department on the (i) effects and (ii) frequency of (A) tornadoes and (B) other future extreme weather events.

Ian Pearson: The Met Office has records of tornadoes reported by its network of manned observing stations. The only such recorded occurrence of a tornado was at Chivenor, Devon at 09:00 on 4 August 1960. This, of course, does not preclude other events that were not detected by the Met Office's stations.
	The tornado over north-west London was generated within a fast-moving squall line moving east on the morning of 8 December 2006. Data were collected from numerous observational systems as this weather event passed over the UK. However, due to the small scale of the phenomena reported, no single operational synoptic observational system was close enough to measure the tornado directly.
	Tornadoes are too small to be directly considered as part of current climate models. Any effect of climate change must be inferred from larger scale phenomena. To date, there is no clear indication of what effect climate change might have on either the frequency or intensity of tornadoes in the UK.
	Research, funded by the Ministry of Defence through the Public Weather Service (PWS), has been conducted at the Met Office in the past to examine the predictability of tornadoes and associated severe thunder storms. There are no current plans to fund further PWS research at the Met Office on the occurrence and predictability of tornadoes.
	Extensive research is also carried out at the Met Office, funded as part of the PWS, into the occurrence and predictability of extreme weather events. The primary output of PWS-funded research is to improve prediction of high-impact weather in the UK. However, this research does not address any future changes in the frequency or intensity of such events.
	The main avenue of DEFRA funding for research on future extreme events in the UK is through the Met Office Hadley Centre and UK Climate Impacts Programme. DEFRA has also funded, or is funding, work at the Hadley Centre through the Climate Prediction Programme into future global extremes, including extra-tropical storms, tropical storms, drought, extreme precipitation and heat waves. However, DEFRA has not funded any specific research on the effects and frequency of tornadoes.
	DEFRA does not hold information on either the number of people injured or the costs incurred as a result of tornadoes.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects the publication of the next assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: We look forward to the publication of the fourth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report, which is expected to be published in 2007 according to the following schedule:
	IPCC Working Group I report (covering the physical basis of climate change)—February 2007
	IPCC Working Group II report (covering climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability)—April 2007
	IPCC Working Group III report (covering mitigation of climate change)—May 2007
	Synthesis Report (covering all three working groups)—November 2007
	The IPCC has completed three assessment reports to date, in 1990, 1996 and 2001. The first and second reports provided a firm foundation on which to build climate policy and were influential in developing an international response to climate change, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol. The third report presented important advances in the scientific understanding of climate change and its projected effects and showed clearly the effect of human activities on the climate system.

Ministerial Blog

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which of his posts have been removed from his blog; and for what reasons.

Barry Gardiner: No posts have been removed from the blog.

Nuclear Decommissioning Agency

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what basis the decision was made not to undertake a public consultation on his proposals to merge Nirex into the Nuclear Decommissioning Agency.

Ian Pearson: There has been an extensive process of consultation by the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management on the future management of radioactive waste, involving the public and stakeholders. Further consultation is planned next year on the site selection process.
	The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) was given the powers for disposal of radioactive waste under the Energy Act 2004 and this followed public consultation and parliamentary debate. The proposal to augment the NDA's capabilities by incorporation of skills and technology from United Kingdom Nirex Ltd. followed careful consideration in the light of views from Nirex, the NDA and others.
	The Government believe that the arrangements set out in the Secretary of State's statement to Parliament on 25 October 2006,  Official Report, column 1519, represent the most positive way forward in ensuring that CoRWM's recommendations are taken forward in a timely and effective way, to the public benefit.

Ocean Acidification

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will assess the consequences for the UK  (a) population and  (b) economy of ocean acidification; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: Ocean acidity has been relatively stable for over 20 million years. However, the seas are becoming more acidic as increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide is absorbed at the sea surface. Models suggest that surface pH has decreased by 0.1 pH unit since pre-industrial times.
	The full impacts of acidification remain largely unknown and, at present, we have little hard evidence of changes that have occurred, or are occurring, in UK waters. However, it is predicted that organisms such as corals, some plankton, shellfish and sea urchins may become less able to produce calcareous parts, such as shells, by the middle of this century if the current trend continues.
	We still do not have enough information to assess the consequences of ocean acidification for the UK population and economy, but DEFRA and the Department for Trade and Industry are aware of the possible effects and are funding research on the impact of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide, and consequent ocean acidification, on the marine environment.
	We also intend to develop a pilot marine monitoring programme for measuring acidity in the UK shelf sea as well as further ecosystem-based measurements in conjunction with the Natural Environment Research Council under their Oceans 2025 initiative.

Post Office

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations his Department has made to the Department of Trade and Industry on the role played in village communities by rural post offices.

Barry Gardiner: holding answer 18 December 2006
	The Department has worked closely with the Department of Trade and Industry and other Government Departments, including the devolved Administrations, throughout the development of the Government's proposals for future support of the post office network—which the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has since announced on 14 December 2006.

Radioactive Waste Policy Group

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) remit and  (b) membership is of the radioactive waste policy group (RWPG); what reports have been issued by the RWPG; and if he will make a statement on the future of the group.

Ian Pearson: The Radioactive Waste Policy Group (RWPG) is chaired and managed by DEFRA. RWPG represents Government Departments, devolved Administrations, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the principal regulatory bodies.
	RWPG has the remit to carry out reviews, calling on external advice as necessary, and to co-ordinate radioactive waste management policy and regulatory initiatives.
	The group meets three to four times a year and functions through correspondence during the intervening periods.
	Further information and RWPG updates are available on the DEFRA website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/radioactivity/waste/rwpg/index.htm

Recycling

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much municipal glass was recycled by each London borough in the last two years for which figures are available; how much was  (a) recycled back into glass bottles or jars and  (b) used as aggregate in each case; how many tonnes of carbon dioxide were (i) saved and (ii) produced in each case; if he will estimate what the net difference would be in carbon dioxide savings if all the glass collected was recycled back into glass bottles or jars; and what steps he is taking to encourage further carbon dioxide savings.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The tonnage of municipal glass collected for recycling for each waste authority in London is shown in the following table for 2003-4 and 2005-06. A complete dataset for 2004-5 is not available due to the piloting of a new data collection system in this year.
	Figures for the four joint waste disposal authorities include the tonnages collected by their constituent waste collection authorities and any glass collected for recycling through civic amenity sites run by the disposal authority. These tonnages, particularly for 2003-04, do not include glass if it is collected as part of a co-mingled kerbside collection scheme.
	
		
			  Authority  Authority Type  2003-4  2005-6 
			 Bexley LB Unitary 2,131 4,238 
			 Tower Hamlets LB Unitary 1,055 1,647 
			 City of London Unitary 91 206 
			 Westminster City Council Unitary 4,791 4,939 
			 Redbridge LB Collection 1,110 1,925 
			 Newham LB Collection 707 304 
			 Havering LB Collection 1,548 1,962 
			 Barking and Dagenham LB Collection 397 528 
			 East London Waste Authority Disposal 3,846 4,719 
			 Waltham Forest LB Collection 1,893 2,663 
			 Islington LB Collection 2,003 2,299 
			 Haringey LB Collection 1,794 2,436 
			 Hackney LB Collection 388 2,926 
			 Enfield LB Collection 1,904 2,363 
			 Camden LB Collection 4,000 4,438 
			 Barnet LB Collection 3,139 4,975 
			 North London Waste Authority Disposal 15,120 22,099 
			 Southwark LB Unitary 1,467 3,476 
			 Lewisham LB Unitary 1,709 3,106 
			 Greenwich LB Unitary 945 1,664 
			 Sutton LB Unitary 2,410 2,679 
			 Merton LB Unitary 1,731 2,937 
			 Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Unitary 1,250 1,978 
			 Croydon LB Unitary 3,874 4,147 
			 Bromley LB Unitary 4,847 5,624 
			 Richmond upon Thames LB Collection 4,250 5,168 
			 Hounslow LB Collection 2,964 3,216 
			 Hillingdon LB Collection 1,619 1,798 
			 Harrow LB Collection 1,818 2,278 
			 Ealing LB Collection 3,710 4,293 
			 Brent LB Collection 2,270 2,015 
			 West London Waste Authority Disposal 16,631 18,768 
			 Wandsworth LB Collection 590 3,705

Single Farm Payment

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many English farmers have received their 2006 single farm payment.

Barry Gardiner: holding answer 19 December 2006
	As at 6 December 2006, 115,750 claimants (99.22 per cent.) had received a total of £1.519 billion (99.43 per cent.) in full or partial payments.

Single Farm Payment

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his estimate is of the total cost of the interest to be paid to farmers as a result of late payment of single farm payments for the period July to December 2006.

Barry Gardiner: holding answer 19 December 2006
	In respect of the 2005 single payment scheme the Rural Payments Agency has paid a total of £846,000 in interest between 1 July and 14 December 2006.

Snowfall

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the predicted annual number of days of snowfall is for  (a) London,  (b) Edinburgh,  (c) Bristol and  (d) Inverness in (i) 2010, (ii) 2020, (iii) 2030 and (iv) 2050.

Ian Pearson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 15 November 2005,  Official Report, columns 1070-71W. Revised "UK Climate Change Scenarios" are expected to be published in 2008.

Stern Report

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the authors of the Stern report on implementation of the recommendations of the report.

Ian Pearson: During the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, Sir Nicholas Stern had regular meetings with the Secretary of State to keep him updated on the review's likely findings. However, the Stern Review was an independent report to Government, so the authors were not responsible for its implementation.
	The key policy conclusions set out by the Stern Review's final report were in line with the UK's existing climate change policy measures and the work being taken forward following our Energy Review, in the DfID White Paper, and the forthcoming Energy White Paper.
	Our response to the Stern report—some of which was announced at the report's launch and some in the pre-Budget report—has two main focuses. First, we want to integrate the Stern report's recommendations about international climate change into the UK's own international climate change policy. For example, the report set out the key role of carbon pricing to ensure that the costs of climate change are factored into all economic decisions. The Chancellor, the Environment Secretary and the Trade and Industry Secretary subsequently published the Government's vision to ensure that the EU Emissions Trading Scheme works to become the centre of a global carbon market.
	Second, we are committed to taking action at home that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions without reducing economic growth. For example, the Stern report suggests a credible long-term framework is crucial to ensure effective low-carbon investment decisions and thus enhance competitiveness. In this respect, we announced a new Climate Change Bill, which will put into statute the Government's long-term goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 60 per cent. by 2050 and set out a framework for achieving this. This will also strengthen our ability to be global leaders in a future international framework for climate change.
	We will continue to consider the conclusions of the Stern Review carefully to see if there is more we should do to ensure a sufficient global response to climate change.

US-EU Biotechnology Dispute

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the policy was of the UK Government in the negotiations prior to the recent decision of the European Commission not to appeal against the World Trade Organisation's verdict on the US-EU biotechnology dispute.

Ian Pearson: The Government agree with the European Commission that the World Trade Organisation's verdict does not call into question the current EU regulatory regime on genetically modified organisms (GMO) and will not result in any relaxation of the existing rules. GM products will only be approved for marketing within the EU if they pass a detailed case-by-case risk assessment and are considered safe for human health and the environment.

Waste Disposal

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average performance against best value performance indicator 82  (a) a and  (b) b for household waste recycling and composting performance was of (i) waste collection authorities, (ii) waste disposal authorities and (iii) unitary waste authorities in (A) London and (B) England in 2004-05.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 8 January 2007
	Average local authority household recycling and composting rates for London and England for each type of authority based on their 2004-05 best value performance indicators are shown in the following table. The average rates are weighted according to population within each local authority area and overall estimates for London and England are based on performance by unitary authorities and waste disposal authorities.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			  2004-5  Dry recycling rate (82a)  Green recycling rate (82b)  82a+b 
			  England 14.9 7.9 22.9 
			 WDA 16.0 9.2 25.2 
			 UA 13.0 5.5 18.5 
			 WCA 14.9 5.9 20.8 
			 
			  London 13.8 3.9 17.7 
			 WDA 13.4 4.1 17.5 
			 UA 14.4 3.5 17.9 
			 WCA 13.2 4.3 17.5 
			  Source: Best Value Performance Indicators 20045 
		
	
	Statistics for 2005-06 are also available and can be viewed at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2006/061215a.htm

Waste Disposal

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of whether each London waste disposal authority is on track to achieve its landfill allowance trading scheme allocations for 2010.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 8 January 2007
	On 12 October 2006 I publicly congratulated all waste authorities in England for complying with their obligations during 2005-06. England's total allocation of allowances for that period was set at 15.2 million tonnes, and the calculated amount of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) sent to landfill was 12.4 million tonnes. That surplus is available to local authorities in 2006-07.
	In 2009-10, the amount of BMW which can go to landfill will fall to 11.2 million tonnes. Waste disposal authorities will have to reduce the amount of BMW going to landfill by about 1.2 million tonnes compared to 2005-06. England is making good progress to meet this target, assuming that current trends continue.
	The flexibilities provided by the landfill allowances trading scheme (LATS) will enable waste disposal authorities to meet their obligations under the scheme in the most cost effective way. It is up to each authority to plan how to comply with its duties in any scheme year. It is not possible to predict how any individual authority will choose to comply with the requirements of the scheme in 2009-10.
	Information about the performance of all waste disposal authorities in England is available on the LATS public register at:
	http://lats.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=register&Module=publicRegister/registerMain.
	The Environment Agency has published a report on the first year of the landfill allowances trading scheme:
	http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/444217/444663/landfill/986852/987368/1113678/1512729/

Waste Disposal

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to prevent local authorities from meeting their landfill allowance trading scheme allocations by moving waste off the municipal balance sheet by selling off their commercial waste portfolios.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 8 January 2007
	Selling off its commercial waste portfolio will not help a local authority to work within its landfill allowance.
	Section 45 (1) (b) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 places a duty on the local authority to make arrangements for the collection of commercial waste in its area, if requested by the holder of the waste to collect it. Therefore in order to fulfil this duty, the authority must have arrangements in place to deal with waste from commercial sources. Irrespective of whether it provides the service itself or contracts some other body to do the work, the local authority is still in control of the waste.
	Under the landfill allowance trading scheme (LATS) regulations, all waste controlled by the local authority is considered municipal waste and counts towards its allowance.
	DEFRA's guidance on LATS can be accessed via the following link:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/localauth/lats/pdf/lats-municipalwasteguidance.pdf

Wild Birds

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the basis was for his Department's decision not to adopt a proposal to prohibit the import of wild birds during the passage of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill in 2005.

Barry Gardiner: The temporary EU ban on the import of wild birds, imposed in October 2005 in light of the threat from avian influenza, is still in place with the latest extension until 31 March 2007. During the passage of the NERC Bill there were calls for the UK to permanently ban imports of wild birds. At that time the European Commission had been asked to consider whether there were grounds for extending the ban on a more permanent basis and we felt it would be premature for the UK to introduce any stricter measures pending the development of a wider EU position. We expect a decision from the Commission on this issue soon.

Winsford: Rural Recovery

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether areas of Winsford are eligible for grants for rural recovery; if he will make available the relevant guidelines on bids for rural recovery; what rural recovery grants have been made in Winsford; and how much has been spent on administration in Warrington in total and as a percentage of grants made.

Barry Gardiner: Cheshire Rural Recovery (now renamed Cheshire Rural Enterprise) was formed in 2003 as a five-year, £10 million scheme to assist in delivering improvements to Cheshire's rural economy. The scheme manages a number of projects such as the Rural Small Building Scheme, which aims to refurbish under-used rural buildings, and Saddle Up which supports the equestrian sector. The exact criteria for the different areas of support can vary depending on the grant. The guidelines for applicants are available on the Cheshire Rural Enterprise website at:
	http://www.cwhrural.info/.
	The scheme has now committed virtually all of its resources. To date, two projects have been supported in Winsford, mainly though their impact on the wider rural area:
	(i) As part of the Rural Business Development programme managed through Business Link, TCR Irrigation were supported to purchase specialist equipment. A £15,300 grant was offered of a £51,000 total project cost.
	(ii) Support has been provided to develop a new radio station to be based in Winsford but covering a large area of rural Cheshire. A £18,980 grant was offered of a £71,470 total project cost.
	As a rule, the urban areas of Winsford are not eligible for rural recovery grant support as the town has not been classed as a market town. The surrounding rural hinterland of the town would be eligible.
	The administration costs for Cheshire Rural Enterprise are not managed at borough council level but are administered for the scheme as a whole. The administration costs for the whole scheme are set at 6.5 per cent. of the total approved.

Woodland

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2006,  Official Report, column 961W, on woodland, if he will make an assessment of the environmental effects of tax relief and exemptions for woodland where there is no requirement to manage, fell and replant.

Barry Gardiner: We have no plans to make an assessment. It would be very difficult to carry out an assessment of just one of the factors that can influence woodland management decisions. In addition the cost of such an assessment, if possible, would far exceed any likely benefit that could be gained.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Digital Switchover

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the number of households that will qualify for assistance in switching over to digital television in each parliamentary constituency in Scotland; what steps she is taking to ensure that those households which qualify for assistance will receive it; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: Details for each parliamentary constituency in Scotland are in the following table.
	The Digital Switchover (Disclosure of Information) Bill was introduced on the 16 November. The Bill would enable the scheme to receive social security information in order to target those eligible for assistance and so help increase take-up amongst those eligible. There will also be extensive communications to raise awareness of the assistance available from the help scheme.
	We are working closely with the Digital Switchover Consumer Experts Group to explore how best to communicate with eligible groups.
	Age Concern, Help the Aged, the National Consumer Council, RNIB and RNID attend these meetings.
	
		
			  Constituency  Households (defined as eligible benefit units) 
			 Aberdeen North 12,000 
			 Aberdeen South 9,000 
			 Airdrie and Shotts 11,000 
			 Angus 11,000 
			 Argyll and Bute 11,000 
			 Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock 13,000 
			 Banff and Buchan 11,000 
			 Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk 11,000 
			 Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross 8,000 
			 Central Ayrshire 11,000 
			 Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill 12,000 
			 Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East 10,000 
			 Dumfries and Galloway 12,000 
			 Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale 11,000 
			 Dundee East 11,000 
			 Dundee West 12,000 
			 Dunfermline and West Fife 10,000 
			 East Dunbartonshire 9,000 
			 East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow 12,000 
			 East Lothian 12,000 
			 East Renfrewshire 10,000 
			 Edinburgh East 10,000 
			 Edinburgh North and Leith 9,000 
			 Edinburgh South 10,000 
			 Edinburgh South West 10,000 
			 Edinburgh West 10,000 
			 Falkirk 13,000 
			 Glasgow Central 10,000 
			 Glasgow East 16,000 
			 Glasgow North 9,000 
			 Glasgow North East 14,000 
			 Glasgow North West 13,000 
			 Glasgow South 12,000 
			 Glasgow South West 13,000 
			 Glenrothes 12,000 
			 Gordon 9,000 
			 Inverclyde 12,000 
			 Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey 11,000 
			 Kilmarnock and Loudoun 13,000 
			 Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath 13,000 
			 Lanark and Hamilton East 13,000 
			 Linlithgow and East Falkirk 13,000 
			 Livingston 10,000 
			 Midlothian 10,000 
			 Moray 10,000 
			 Motherwell and Wishaw 13,000 
			 Na h-Eileanan an lar 4,000 
			 North Ayrshire and Arran 13,000 
			 North East Fife 9,000 
			 Ochil and South Perthshire 11,000 
			 Orkney and Shetland 4,000 
			 Paisley and Renfrewshire North 12,000 
			 Paisley and Renfrewshire South 12,000 
			 Perth and North Perthshire 12,000 
			 Ross, Skye and Lochaber 7,000 
			 Rutherglen and Hamilton West 15,000 
			 Stirling 11,000 
			 West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine 8,000 
			 West Dunbartonshire 14,000 
			  Notes: 1. Rounded to the nearest thousand.  2. Eligibility for help from the digital switchover help scheme will be by benefit unit rather than the whole household definition used by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), the Scottish Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Northern Ireland Office to forecast future household growth.  3. The definition of a benefit unit is a couple and any dependent children. It excludes adults deemed to be non-dependents who, if eligible, will be able to claim assistance from the help scheme in their own right.

Digital Switchover

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the expected cost to the public purse is of state support to people on benefits for digital switchover;
	(2)  what the expected cost is to the public purse of supporting the transfer to digital television; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: In addition to meeting its costs for the upgrade of the transmission network for digital switchover, the BBC will meet Digital UK's communication costs and a share of Digital UK's operational costs. The cost to the BBC to support Digital UK amounts to £228 million for the period of digital switchover. In addition, the BBC will also fund the digital switchover help scheme for people 75 or over or who have a significant disability. Our best estimate at this stage is that the cost of the scheme will be at or around £600 million over the period of switchover.
	There are no central estimates of the overall cost to Government of digital switchover. However, other than the costs of updating television equipment within the Government sector, the only costs will be those incurred for research, communications and other programme support costs for the Digital Switchover Programme.

Royal Events

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the Government plan to link the celebrations for HM the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012 with the London Olympics.

Richard Caborn: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is not currently involved in preparations to commemorate HM the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2012 and currently there are no plans to link any possible celebrations with the London Olympics. Any announcement of plans will be made closer to the time.

TREASURY

£5 Notes

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many £5 notes there are in circulation; how many were taken out of circulation in each of the last five years; and how many new notes were produced in each year.

Edward Balls: The Bank of England's data are reproduced in the following table.
	For completeness, the table also includes figures for new £5 notes issued in each year. There is no direct relationship between the value of notes produced by the Bank in any year and the number of notes put into circulation. The Bank's policy is to meet retail banks' demand for new notes. This demand determines the value of notes issued (ie new notes put into circulation by the retail banks) each year. In addition to producing notes to meet demand, the Bank may also vary production to alter the level of its contingency stocks.
	
		
			  All data are value of notes in £ millions 
			  Year ending February  £5s in circulation  £5s produced  New £5s issued  £5s destroyed 
			 2002 1,044 543 1,258 1,118 
			 2003 1,051 1,510 1,083 877 
			 2004 1,025 897 1,545 585 
			 2005 1,055 970 534 768 
			 2006 1,052 550 314 485 
		
	
	The figures for the years ending February 2003 and February 2004 include changes due to the replacement of the old £5 note with a new design and are not therefore directly comparable with data for the other years.

1997 Budget

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will produce an updated version of the graph S1.8 from the Budget 1997 and provide the background figures; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I am not aware of the graph the hon. Member refers to. If he would provide further information, I will look into the matter.

Aviation Industry

John Randall: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the likely cost to the aviation industry of paying the full cost of the contribution of emissions from aviation to climate change identified in the Stern Review.

John Healey: The Government welcome the findings of the independent Stern Review on the "Economics of Climate Change" and continue to develop measures to tackle climate change.
	As the Stern Review identified, climate change is an international issue and that is why the Government are committed to the inclusion of aviation within the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.
	A joint March 2003 Department for Transport and HM Treasury report "Aviation and the Environment: Using Economic Instruments" provided estimates of monetary values of external costs relating to climate change, local air quality and noise. The cost of carbon emissions associated with UK passenger aircraft was estimated in the report at £1.4 billion in 2000, rising to over £4 billion in 2030 (using an illustrative value for the cost of carbon of £70 per tonne, rising by £1 per year in real terms).

Child Trust Funds

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have opened child trust funds in each year since their inception; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Balls: The latest set of child trust fund account opening statistics was published by HM Revenue and Customs on 4 January 2007 at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/child_trust_funds/child-trust-funds.htm
	These show that in 2005-06, the first complete year of operation for the child trust fund scheme, 76 per cent. of parents used their voucher within 12 months to open an account for their child.
	They also show that almost 2.5 million child trust fund accounts have now been opened, and over 1.95 million accounts have been opened by parents.

Consultants

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many consultants have been employed by the Office of Government Commerce in the past 12 months; and at what cost.

John Healey: During 2005-06, the Office of Government Commerce entered into 190 consultancy contracts at a total cost of £11.1 million.

Credit Unions

David Heyes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to support credit unions in their bid to make an impact on high levels of indebtedness to doorstep lenders among poor and vulnerable people; and what support he offers to credit unions to allow them to provide people with an alternative source of affordable credit.

Edward Balls: The Government recognise the work of credit unions in providing affordable credit to those encountering exclusion from mainstream financial services.
	The Government have established a Growth Fund of £36 million, administered by the Department for Work and Pensions, to boost the coverage, capacity and sustainability of credit unions and other third sector lenders. The recent pre-Budget report announced the Government will also make funding available to support the training requirements of staff and volunteers working for third sector lenders. Further measures introduced to support the sector include enabling credit unions to offer cash ISAs, and increasing the maximum rate that credit unions are able to charge on loans, in order to increase flexibility to lend to those on low incomes.
	The Government will report on next steps for the financial inclusion strategy shortly.

Economic Activity

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people are economically  (a) active and  (b) inactive in the UK.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 9 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about economic activity and inactivity. (112870)
	The attached table gives economically active and inactive levels and rates for the three-month period ending October 2006. These data are published each month in the Labour Market Statistics First Release.
	Estimates are taken from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
	
		
			  Economically active and inactive people of working age( 1 ) United Kingdom, seasonally adjusted 
			  Three months ending October 2006  Levels (000)  Rates( 2)  (per cent.) 
			 Economically active(3) 30,700 79.0 
			 Economically inactive 7,835 21.0 
			 (1) Men aged 16 to 64 and women aged 16 to 59. (2 )As a percentage of all persons of working age. (3 )Level figure relates to those aged 16 and over.  Source:  ONS Labour Force Survey (LFS)

English Heritage's Inspired Campaign

Patrick Cormack: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many postcards supporting English Heritage's Inspired campaign he received in 2006.

Stephen Timms: There have been 2,925 postcards received during 2006.

Iraq Visit

Mark Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will answer the questions tabled by the hon. Member for the Forest of Dean on  (a) 23 November 2006, reference 105863, and  (b) 28 November 2006, reference 106097, on his visit to Iraq.

John Healey: Both questions were answered on 19 December.

Military Commitments: Contingency Reserve

Liam Fox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the size was of the contingency reserve in each of the last 10 years; and how much of the contingency reserve was used to meet military commitments in each year.

Stephen Timms: Details on the DEL reserves, are set out in the Budget and Pre-Budget Report each year. The net additional costs of military operations are met from the reserves, and outturn figures are given in the Ministry of Defence's audited accounts each year.

Pensions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will publish a consultation document on the future of pension term assurance;
	(2)  what the original estimate was of the tax cost of introducing tax relief for pension term assurance;
	(3)  what information became available since A-Day about the take-up of pension term assurances which led to the announcement made in the Pre-Budget Report to suspend tax reliefs for these policies;
	(4)  how many pension term assurance policies have been sold since A-Day;
	(5)  what estimate he has made of the cost of tax relief for pension term assurance in 2006-07.

Edward Balls: The new tax regime for registered pension schemes included additional flexibilities to make it easier for pension providers to offer lump sum death benefits as part of an individual's overall personal pension arrangements.
	By saving in any tax-privileged pension vehicle, individuals are committing to using the resulting fund for the purpose of providing an income in retirement. As part of the Pre-Budget Report, the Government announced their intention to work with the pensions industry to explore, in time for the Budget, the best way to apply this principle to term assurance contracts sold as pension products.
	There has been a large growth in sales of pension term assurance since the inception of the new pensions tax regime. According to the new business statistics collated by the Association of British Insurers, 17,090 term assurance policies were sold as pension products in the quarter ended 30 June 2006 and another 44,580 policies were sold in the quarter ended 30 September 2006.
	The announcement at Pre-Budget Report ensures that the cost of the new simplified pensions tax regime remains in line with the estimates previously set out in the published Regulatory Impact Assessments for simplifying the taxation of pensions. These are available on the HMRC website at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/ria/ria-pensions-simplification.pdf

Population Statistics: Tamworth

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many  (a) births and  (b) deaths there were in Tamworth constituency in each year since 1996.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 9 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many (a) births and (b) deaths there were in Tamworth constituency in each year since 1996. (112830)
	The table below provides the number of (a) births and (b) deaths in Tamworth parliamentary constituency for the years 1996 to 2005 (the latest available).
	
		
			  Table 1: Births( 1)  and deaths( 2)  in Tamworth parliamentary constituency( 3) , 1996 to 2005 
			  Number 
			   Births  Deaths 
			 1996 1,182 754 
			 1997 1,182 732 
			 1998 1,192 797 
			 1999 1,127 771 
			 2000 1,093 807 
			 2001 1,091 866 
			 2002 986 836 
			 2003 1,151 790 
			 2004 1,126 775 
			 2005 1,063 753 
			 (1) Births occurring in each year. (2) Deaths registered in each year. (3) Using boundaries as of 2005 for all years shown.

Powered Mobility Products: Insurance

Mark Oaten: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to grant retailers of powered mobility products covered under the industry code of practice the right to sell insurance without requiring Financial Services Authority accreditation.

Edward Balls: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The Financial Services Authority (FSA) assumed responsibility for the regulation of general insurance on 14 January 2005. The introduction of the FSA's regime served to implement the EU's Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD) 2002/92/EC in the UK.
	The IMD requires the UK to regulate various insurance mediation activities in connection with contracts of insurance, including long-term insurance business, commercial insurance and reinsurance. The activities required to be regulated include selling and administering such insurance contracts by intermediaries. The IMD does not apply where a number of specified conditions are met, however the selling of insurance along with powered mobility products is not capable of meeting all of these conditions. In general, those undertaking insurance mediation must either be authorised to do so by the FSA, be an appointed representative of an authorised firm or be a member of a designated professional body that allows the firm to be exempt from authorisation.

Sainsbury Review

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date Lord Sainsbury agreed to conduct the Sainsbury Review that he announced in the Pre-Budget Report on 6 December.

John Healey: Details of the announcement of the Sainsbury review of science and innovation are set out in the No. 10 press release available at:
	http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page10402.asp

Small Breweries Relief Scheme

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will calculate the average number of employees of those businesses in receipt of the full 50 per cent. relief under the small breweries relief scheme.

John Healey: While the Government gather data on the performance of the brewing industry, including the performance of small breweries, employment data are not routinely collected. However, figures from the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) show that around 130 new breweries have opened since the introduction of small breweries relief, and that these have brought with them over 1,000 new jobs, many in economically deprived rural communities.

State School Cadet Units

Mark Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2006,  Official Report, column 453W, on state school cadet units, on what dates  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in his Department met (i) their counterparts from the Department for Education and Skills and (ii) other interested parties to discuss his proposals to form state school cadet units.

Stephen Timms: Treasury Ministers and officials are in regular dialogue with other Departments on a range of issues.

Winter Deaths

David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many excess winter deaths there were in Stroud constituency in each of the last 10 years.

John Healey: The information requested fall within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 9 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many winter deaths there were in Stroud constituency in each of the last 10 years. (112888)
	Estimates of excess winter deaths relate to a four-month period from December of one year to March of the next year. The table below provides the number of excess winter deaths in Stroud parliamentary constituency for the years 1995/96 to 2004/05 (the latest available).
	
		
			  Table 1: excess winter deaths( 1,2)  in Stroud parliamentary constituency( 3) ,1995-96 to 2004-05 
			  Number 
			  Winter  Excess deaths 
			 1995-96 110 
			 1996-97 80 
			 1997-98 70 
			 1998-99 130 
			 1999-2000 100 
			 2000-01 70 
			 2001-02 60 
			 2002-03 80 
			 2003-04 0 
			 2004-05 40 
			 (1) The estimated number of excess winter deaths is the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. (2) Data are based on deaths occurring in each month. (3) Using boundaries as of 2005 for all years shown.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

British Overseas Territories

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what stage has been reached in proposed constitutional reform in each of the British Overseas Territories.

Geoff Hoon: The present situation in the constitutional review process in each of the Overseas Territories is as follows:
	 Anguilla
	A Constitutional and Electoral Reform Commission was appointed in early 2006. It formally presented draft recommendations in August 2006. It is for the Government of Anguilla to decide on the next stage in the process.
	 British Virgin Islands
	Three rounds of talks were held in 2006 and a proposed final round is planned for February 2007 in London.
	 Cayman Islands
	Exploratory talks were held in the Cayman Islands in March 2006. We are expecting to resume talks following the completion of the public consultations which we understand are planned by the Cayman Islands Government for early 2007.
	 Falkland Islands
	The Falkland Islands Government have established a Select Committee on Constitutional Reform. The committee has published two reports—in October 2005 and, following the election of a new council, in August 2006—and the issues have now gone to public consultation within the islands. We await a formal approach from Falkland Islands Councillors, once their proposals have been finalised.
	 Gibraltar
	The constitutional review process with Gibraltar, which started in December 2003, has concluded successfully. Gibraltar's new constitution came into force on 2 January 2007.
	 Montserrat
	Formal talks were held in Montserrat in September 2005, March 2006 and October 2006. It is likely that a further round of talks will be held in spring 2007, before a proposed final round in London thereafter.
	 St. Helena and Dependencies
	In a consultative poll in May 2005, St. Helenians rejected a draft constitution negotiated between representatives of St. Helena and the Government, which would have provided for ministerial government for the territory, among other things.
	 Turks and Caicos Islands
	The constitutional review process with the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) concluded successfully in October 2005. TCI's new constitution came into force on 9 August 2006.
	There are currently no proposed constitutional reviews for Bermuda; British Antarctic Territory; British Indian Ocean Territory; Pitcairn Islands; and South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands.

Falkland Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether there are any plans for a formal visit by Her Majesty the Queen to the Falkland Islands.

Margaret Beckett: There are currently no plans for Her Majesty the Queen to visit the Falkland Islands.

Iraq Study Group

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  when  (a) the Prime Minister and  (b) HM Ambassadors to Washington and Baghdad were first invited to make submissions to the Iraq Study Group; and on what date each submission was made;
	(2)  if she will publish a transcript of the evidence given to the Iraq Study Group by HM Ambassadors to Washington and Baghdad.

Margaret Beckett: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister was invited in early October to speak to the Iraq Study Group and duly did so by videoconference from London on 14 November.
	Our ambassador in Washington, Sir David Manning, was invited in April to speak to the Iraq Study Group, and duly did so on 18 May.
	Our ambassador in Baghdad, Dominic Asquith, was invited to meet the Group in August, and did so, when they visited Baghdad in September.
	These were all discussions, not formal submissions or evidence sessions, and no verbatim transcripts exist. The discussions covered a range of issues including the political situation in Iraq, the process of transferring security responsibility to the Iraqi security forces, economic development and the involvement of the international community and international institutions.

Legal Advice

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent by the Department on external legal advice in each of the past five years.

Margaret Beckett: The amount spent by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on external legal advice from counsel and solicitors in private practice by way of disbursements via the HM Treasury Solicitor in each of the past five years is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2001-02 124,641.66 
			 2002-03 697,878.22 
			 2003-04 204,366.75 
			 2004-05 331,731.68 
			 2005-06 328,378.29 
		
	
	The FCO does not hold information on aggregate amounts spent on any other external legal advice.

Nigeria

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to the Nigerian Government on the continuing destruction of churches in Jigawa State.

Ian McCartney: We are concerned by all reports of inter-religious conflict in Nigeria. Unfortunately, clashes between religious groups are not uncommon. The primary underlying cause of the conflict in northern Nigeria is rivalry between ethnic groups over the control of resources and power.
	Our High Commission in Abuja is aware of a local dispute in Dutse in Jigawa state, which occurred on 19 and 20 September 2006, during which a small number of people were injured and churches were burnt down. The police quickly took control and imposed a curfew. There have been no further outbreaks of violence in the area and this appears to be an isolated situation, which boiled over. Our High Commission in Abuja regularly raises incidents of religious conflict with the Nigerian authorities but no representations have been made about this specific incident.
	My noble Friend Baroness Royall of Blaisdon, on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, recently met with representatives of Christian and Muslim communities at an interfaith seminar in Kaduna to see the work they are undertaking to build bridges to better interfaith understanding. We continue to urge restraint and reconciliation on all sides and stress that intervention must be carried out with full respect for human rights.
	Supporting measures to address religious conflict is also a key part of our conflict prevention strategy for Nigeria. We are funding projects to build trust between Nigeria's various religious communities. This includes support to the excellent work of Coventry Cathedral on building trust and understanding at grass-roots level between different religious and ethnic communities, which has contributed to a drop in the level of violence and an increased level of dialogue between Christians and Muslims. We are also funding the work of the Bridge Builders Foundation, a mixed Christian and Muslim organisation operating in northern Nigeria, to look into the causes of recent conflict between Christians and Muslims. They are in the process of setting up early warning mechanisms in all the northern states to prevent future conflict.

North Korea

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contributions she is making to international efforts to ensure that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea  (a) suspends operations at its reactors,  (b) readmits international nuclear inspectors,  (c) reports its nuclear facilities and  (d) closes its nuclear testing site.

Ian McCartney: The Government's work in raising awareness of the scale and nature of the nuclear threat posed by the actions of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) helped UN Resolution 1718 to pass quickly through the UN Security Council. The UK was able to inform discussions about what actions the international community would be able to take. Resolution 1718 made clear that the DPRK should: cease immediately all further nuclear testing; observe a moratorium on nuclear and missile testing; and return to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, thus enabling IAEA inspectors back in to the DPRK and reports to be made on its facilities.

North Korea

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of claims of senior North Korean officials that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a nuclear state.

Ian McCartney: Under the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a nuclear weapon state is defined as a state which manufactured and exploded a nuclear weapon or other nuclear explosive device prior to 1 January 1967. Nuclear weapon states are defined under Article IX.3 of the NPT; these are the UK, US, France, China and Russia. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) already possesses nuclear fuel cycle capabilities and a civil nuclear power generating programme. And on 14 October 2006, following a partially successful nuclear test, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 1718 urging the DPRK to cease immediately all further nuclear testing, observe a moratorium on nuclear and missile testing and rejoin the NPT.

Royal Visits

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which places the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will visit during the year of their diamond wedding anniversary in 2007.

Margaret Beckett: As announced in Her Majesty the Queen's Speech on 15 November 2006,  Official Report, column 4, Her Majesty, accompanied by His Royal Highness (HRH) the Duke of Edinburgh will pay a state visit to the United States of America in May 2007, to celebrate the 400th( )anniversary of the Jamestown settlement. Her Majesty and HRH will also visit Uganda in November 2007 where the Queen will open the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Kampala. Buckingham Palace announced on 19 December 2006 that Her Majesty would visit the Netherlands in February 2007 to mark the 400th anniversary of the English Reformed Church in Amsterdam.

Travel Bans

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations her Department has received from those subject to travel bans, broken down by country; and what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of such bans.

Liam Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government do not maintain a consolidated list of all representations from those subject to travel bans.
	Travel bans can serve important purposes, eg to demonstrate the international community's condemnation of a Government's policies with respect to human rights, good governance, or democracy. They are also an important tool in the international community's efforts to restrict the ability of terrorists to operate. The Government therefore believe they can be an effective tool.

Union Flag

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Union flag will be flown above all Government buildings in all Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies on HM the Queen's Official Birthday on 17 June 2007 from 8 am until sunset.

Geoff Hoon: Her Majesty the Queen's Official Birthday is on 16 June this year. The Overseas Territories (OTs) and Crown Dependencies are constitutionally not part of the United Kingdom and all of them, except Ascension, have their own flag. Anguilla, Ascension, the British Virgin Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, St. Helena and Crown Dependencies (Guernsey, Isle of Man and Jersey) have indicated that they intend to fly the Union flag above all or some government buildings on the Official Birthday. The remaining OTs will fly their own flag. Pitcairn Islands has no government buildings.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

British Household Panel Survey

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many and what proportion of  (a) working age adults and  (b) pensioners were recorded by the British Household Panel Survey as (i) unemployed, (ii) living in a workless household, (iii) having no educational qualifications , (iv) living in social housing, (v) living in overcrowded conditions, (vi) suffering poor mental health, (vii) suffering poor health, (viii) living alone, (ix) lacking consumer durables and (x) enduring financial stress in each year since 1991.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is as follows:
	 (i) Unemployment
	Figures from the British Household Panel Survey indicate that the proportion of working age adults in unemployment fell continuously between 1991 and 2001 (see following table), from 7.19 per cent. to 2.98 per cent. It increased to 3.78 per cent. in 2003. Grossing these proportions up to population estimates suggests that the numbers of unemployed among the working age population have fallen from 2.48 million in 1991 to 1.05 million in 2001, which has since increased to 1.35 million in 2003. (Note that the concept of unemployment is relatively meaningless for pensioners, and therefore we have not shown this.)
	
		
			  Working age population 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 7.19 2.48 
			 1993 6.68 2.31 
			 1995 5.15 1.80 
			 1997 4.17 1.45 
			 2001 2.98 1.05 
			 2003 3.78 1.35 
		
	
	 (ii) Living in a workless household
	The proportion of the working age population who live in a workless household increased from 12.55 per cent. in 1991 to 13.69 per cent. in 1993 (see following table). Since then however, it has fallen continuously, to 9.68 per cent. in 2003. Grossing these to population estimates suggests that the number of working age adults in Britain who live in a workless household has fallen by approximately 1.3 million, from 4.74 million in 1993 to 3.47 million in 2003. Almost all pensioners live in a workless household (by definition), and so we have excluded this from the pensioner analysis.)
	
		
			  Working age population 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 12.55 4.33 
			 1993 13.69 4.74 
			 1995 12.60 4.40 
			 1997 11.62 4.03 
			 2001 10.71 3.79 
			 2003 9.68 3.47 
		
	
	 (iii) No qualifications
	The British Household Panel Survey suggests that the proportion of working age adults with no qualifications has fallen from 24.37 per cent. in 1991 to 11.39 per cent. in 2003.
	However, part of this fall is a cohort effect, caused by ever-increasing numbers of younger individuals attaining higher qualification levels, while older workers (a large proportion of which have no qualifications) retire. These figures suggest that 4.1 million working-age adults in Britain have no qualifications in 2003, compared with 8.4 million in 1991.
	There has also been a continuous fall in the proportion of pensioners with no qualifications, from 64.38 per cent. in 1991 to 49.18 per cent. in 2003. Again, some of this is a cohort effect, with older pensioners with no qualifications being replaced by younger pensioners with higher qualification attainment. In terms of numbers, this suggests that about 1.5 million fewer pensioners had no qualifications in 2003 than in 1991 (5.26 million compared with 6.70 million).
	
		
			   Working age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 24.37 8.41 64.38 6.70 
			 1993 20.78 7.19 61.56 6.40 
			 1995 18.42 6.43 60.23 6.26 
			 1997 16.50 5.73 58.46 6.14 
			 2001 12.47 4.41 53.04 5.62 
			 2003 11.39 4.08 49.18 5.26 
		
	
	 (iv) Living in Social housing
	The proportion of working age adults living in social housing has fallen continuously over the period, from 17.53 per cent. in 1991 to 14.01 per cent. in 2003. In terms of population estimates, this suggests that one million fewer working-age individuals lived in social housing in 2003 than in 1991 (5.02 million in 2003 compared with 6.05 million in 1991).
	Among pensioners, the proportion has also fallen from 35.03 per cent. in 1991 to 22.36 per cent. in 2003. This suggests that about 1.2 million fewer pensioners lived in social housing in 2003 than in 1991 (2.4 million in 2003 compared with 3.64 million in 1991).
	
		
			   Working age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 17.53 6.05 35.03 3.64 
			 1993 16.89 5.84 31.90 3.32 
			 1995 16.23 5.66 31.49 3.27 
			 1997 15.98 5.55 28.47 2.99 
			 2001 15.11 5.35 25.24 2.68 
			 2003 14.01 5.02 22.36 2.39 
		
	
	 (v) Living in overcrowded conditions
	Living conditions (in terms of overcrowding) have improved among working-age adults. In 1991, 8.5 per cent. of the working-age population lived in overcrowded conditions (defined as living in accommodation in which there are more people than rooms). By 2003, this had fallen to 5.91 per cent. In terms of numbers, these estimates suggest that 2.12 million working-age individuals lived in overcrowded conditions in 2003, compared with 2.93 million in 1991.
	Very few pensioners (less than 1 per cent.) lived in overcrowded conditions, translating into fewer than 100,000 individuals.
	
		
			   Working age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 8.50 2.93 0.87 0.09 
			 1993 7.92 2.74 0.10 0.01 
			 1995 7.60 2.65 0.24 0.02 
			 1997 6.84 2.37 0.47 0.05 
			 2001 5.96 2.11 0.46 0.05 
			 2003 5.91 2.12 0.46 0.05 
		
	
	 (vi) Suffering poor mental health
	The proportion of working-age individuals suffering from poor mental health (defined as having a General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) score of 14 or more on the 36-point Likert scale) has increased over the period, from 20.8 per cent. in 1991 to 23 per cent. in 2003. This translates into an increase of approximately one million individuals, from 7.2 million in 1991 to 8.2 million in 2003.
	There has also been an increase in the proportion of pensioners suffering from poor mental health from 20.8 per cent. in 1991 to 23.1 per cent. in 2003. This corresponds to an increase of about 0.4 million pension-age individuals in poor mental health.
	
		
			   Working-age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 20.80 7.18 20.84 2.17 
			 1993 23.38 8.09 23.23 2.42 
			 1995 24.96 8.71 23.05 2.40 
			 1997 23.74 8.24 22.72 2.38 
			 2001 24.33 8.61 24.06 2.55 
			 2003 22.96 8.22 23.10 2.47 
		
	
	 (vii) Suffering poor health
	There was also an increase between 1991 and 2001 in the proportion of working-age individuals reporting poor physical health, from 12 per cent. in 1991 to 14.7 per cent. in 2001. However, this proportion fell to 13.4 per cent. in 2003. This translates into an increase in the number of working-age individuals with poor physical health of 1.1 million between 1991 and 2001, from 4.15 million in 1991 to 5.2 million in 2001. In 2003, approximately 4.8 million working-age adults suffered from poor physical health.
	A similar pattern emerges for pensioners, with an increase in the proportion suffering poor health between 1991 and 2001 (from 38.6 per cent. to 49.1 per cent.), and then a fall in 2003 to 44.9 per cent. This translates into an increase in the number of pensioners with poor health from four million in 1991 to 5.2 million in 2001, followed by a fall to 4.8 million in 2003.
	
		
			   Working-age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 12.03 4.15 38.58 4.01 
			 1993 12.47 4.31 37.56 3.91 
			 1995 13.69 4.78 40.36 4.20 
			 1997 14.01 4.86 40.95 4.30 
			 2001 14.76 5.23 49.08 5.20 
			 2003 13.36 4.78 44.90 4.80 
		
	
	 (viii) Lives alone
	There has been an increase in the proportion of the working-age population living alone from 7.6 per cent. in 1991 to 11.6 per cent. in 2001, translating into an increase of 1.5 million individuals (from 2.6 million in 1991 to 4.1 million in 2001). This proportion fell to 9.7 per cent. in 2003, indicating that about 3.5 million working-age individuals lived alone.
	There was also an initial increase in the proportion of pensioners who lived alone from 39.8 per cent. in 1991 to 42.8 per cent. in 1995 (corresponding to an increasing of about 0.3 million individuals). This proportion fell between 1995 and 2003, such that in 2003 36.8 per cent. of pensioners were living alone (corresponding to about 4 million individuals).
	
		
			   Working age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 7.59 2.62 39.78 4.14 
			 1993 9.39 3.25 42.40 4.41 
			 1995 10.15 3.54 42.75 4.45 
			 1997 10.22 3.55 40.39 4.24 
			 2001 11.63 4.12 39.88 4.23 
			 2003 9.72 3.48 36.76 3.93 
		
	
	 (ix) Lacking consumer durables
	There has been a big decline in the proportion of the working-age population who lack consumer durables (defined as having access to fewer than five of the following: car, colour TV, VCR, washing machine, dishwasher, microwave oven, home PC, CD player). This proportion has fallen from 34.5 per cent. in 1991 to just 4.6 per cent. in 2003. This translates into a fall in numbers from 11.9 million in 1991 to 1.65 million in 2003.
	The fall in the proportion of pensioners lacking consumer durables has been equally dramatic, from 83.6 per cent. in 1991 to 35.9 per cent. in 2003. The number of pension-age individuals lacking consumer durables has fallen from 8.7 million in 1991 to 3.8 million in 2003.
	
		
			   Working-age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 34.46 11.89 83.55 8.69 
			 1993 24.06 8.32 74.01 7.70 
			 1995 17.45 6.09 68.25 7.10 
			 1997 13.02 4.52 59.97 6.30 
			 2001 7.37 2.61 45.26 4.80 
			 2003 4.60 1.65 35.91 3.84 
		
	
	 (x) Enduring financial distress
	The proportion of the working-age population enduring financial distress (defined as either having problems meeting housing costs or has been more than two months in arrears with their mortgage or rent in the past year) has fallen from 15.2 per cent. in 1991 to 5.6 per cent. in 2003, translating into a reduction of about 3.2 million individuals. In 1991 about 5.2 million working-age adults were enduring financial distress, compared to 2 million in 2003.
	There has also been a fall in the proportion of pensioners enduring financial distress over the period, from 6.9 per cent. in 1991 to 1.5 per cent. in 2003. (Although note that this may not be a very good measure of financial distress among pensioners, because a substantial proportion of pensioners do not have housing costs). This reduction translates into a fall in the numbers of pensioners suffering financial distress of about 0.5 million (from 0.7 million in 1991 to 0.2 million in 2003).
	
		
			   Working-age population  Pensioners 
			   Proportion  Population estimate (million)  Proportion  Population estimate (million) 
			 1991 15.18 5.24 6.94 0.72 
			 1993 12.18 4.21 4.80 0.50 
			 1995 8.65 3.02 3.67 0.38 
			 1997 7.53 2.61 3.46 0.36 
			 2001 5.90 2.09 1.83 0.19 
			 2003 5.64 2.02 1.52 0.16

Civil Servants

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on the retirement age, what his Department's policy is on the application of the national default retirement age to staff below the senior civil service.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department's retirement age for staff below the senior civil service is 65; this policy was introduced in 2002. Staff can retire at any age between 60 and 65 subject to giving three months notice and are notified eight months before they are 65 of their right to request to work beyond the age of 65.

EU Emissions Trading System

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions  (a) he and  (b) his officials have had with the European Commission on price stability in the EU emissions trading system.

Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
	We have regular discussions with our EU partners about the future of the EU emissions trading scheme, especially in connection with the European Commission's forthcoming review. One of the UK's major goals for this review is to increase long-term certainty about the future shape of the trading scheme post-2012, which can help improve price stability and provide appropriate signals for more long-term investment.

Written Questions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what target his Department has for the maximum acceptable amount of time to answer parliamentary written questions; and what percentage of parliamentary answers met that target in each parliamentary session since 2001.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department aims to answer parliamentary questions within the timescales specified by Parliament which is named days on the day named, and ordinary written questions within a working week.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Furniture

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been spent by his Department on furniture made by British firms since May 2006.

John Prescott: My department has not spent any money on furniture since it was set up in May 2006.

Gender Equality

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  when he expects to publish his Department's gender equality scheme;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that private organisations contracted to work in his Department are aware of their duties under gender equality legislation when they are exercising public functions on behalf of public bodies;
	(3)  what plans he has to carry out gender impact assessments of his Department's major policy developments and new legislation;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department is taking steps to meet the requirements of the forthcoming duty on public bodies  (a) to end unlawful discrimination and harassment and  (b) to promote equality between women and men.

John Prescott: The Government are committed to the implementation of the gender equality legislation which we introduced. My Department is aware of its obligations, and is taking appropriate steps to ensure that it will be able to meet its gender equality duties by the relevant dates.

Hospitality and Travel Costs

Andrew Robathan: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what the evidential basis was for his statement of 13 December 2006,  Official Report, column 858, that the Government have spent less on hospitality and travel than the previous Administration;
	(2)  what the total amount spent on catering, hospitality and official entertainment by his predecessor as Deputy Prime Minister was in 1996-97.

John Prescott: holding answers 19 December 2006
	I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 9 February 1998,  Official Report, column 16, on 22 July 2004,  Official Report, column 465W, and on 19 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1808W.

Legal Advice

David Davies: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been spent by his Department on external legal advice since its establishment.

John Prescott: Nothing.

Ministerial Duties

Oliver Heald: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 2 November 2006,  Official Report, column 652W, what the cost was of setting up the website giving information about his official duties.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs Spelman) on 23 October 2006,  Official Report, column 1624W.

Official Cars

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many cars run by his Department were manufactured  (a) in the UK and  (b) abroad.

John Prescott: Information on cars operated by the Government Car and Despatch Agency is available on page 14 of its Annual Report and Accounts 2005-06, copies of which are available in the Library for the reference of Members.

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer from the Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office to the hon. Member for Blackpool, South of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-190W, on the retirement age, what his Department's policy is for the setting of retirement ages for staff below the senior civil service under the Civil Service (Management Functions) Act 1992.

John Prescott: Staff in my Department are seconded from the Department for Communities and Local Government. I therefore refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on 11 December 2006,  Official Report, column 903W.

Special Advisers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which notices of external employment have been given by his Department's special advisers since his Department's creation.

John Prescott: My two special advisers are employed on a full-time basis. They have no external employment.

Special Advisers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the gifts received by each of his special advisers from third parties which have been declared to his Department since its establishment; and on what date each was given.

John Prescott: Since the establishment of the Department, special advisers in this Department have received two gifts—the first in July 2006 and the second in November 2006. The items are both valued at less than £25 and have been registered and retained by the Department, in accordance with the "Code of Conduct for Special Advisers".

Special Advisers

Mark Hoban: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many of his Department's civil servants work full-time to support departmental special advisers; and what the salary is of each such civil servant.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 9 October 2006,  Official Report, column 72W.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Arm's Length Management Organisations

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was paid to arm's length management organisations (ALMOs) in each year since 2000; how much is expected to be paid in each year up to 2010; how many applications for ALMO status are pending; how much is expected to be paid to those applications pending; how many ALMOs have announced they cannot meet the Decent Homes Target by 2010; how much ALMOs have inherited in housing debt; and what plans she has for the development of ALMOs.

Yvette Cooper: £56 million was allocated to ALMOs in 2002-03, £321 million in 2003-04, £577 million in 2004-05, £854 million in 2005-06 and £845 million is budgeted for 2006-07. Decisions on the 16 applications under round six of the ALMO programme are pending. Communities and Local Government cannot provide forecasts of future funding for existing or proposed ALMOs, which will depend on the outcome of future spending reviews. No ALMOs have formally announced that they will not be able to make all the stock they manage meet the Decent Homes standard by 2010 though, as my right hon. Friend said in her statement on 7 June 2006,  Official Report, columns 27-29, we expect some areas to continue beyond 2010 where they are starting late on the Decent Homes programme, or where additional time is needed to ensure value for money, deliver mixed communities and the right balance of refurbishment and new build. ALMOs do not incur housing debt, which remains with local authorities. Our plans for the development of ALMOs were set out in the 'Review of Arm's Length Management Organisations' published on 7 June 2006.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many written parliamentary questions to the  (a) Department for Communities and Local Government and  (b) Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the 2005-06 session were not answered wholly or in part on the grounds of disproportionate cost;
	(2)  how many written parliamentary questions to the  (a) Department for Communities and Local Government and  (b) Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation;
	(3)  how many written parliamentary questions to  (a) the Department for Communities and Local Government and  (b) the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the 2005-06 session did not receive an answer.

Angela Smith: In the 2005-06 session, the Department for Communities and Local Government and its predecessor Department, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister received 6,057 written parliamentary questions, excluding questions transferred to other Departments. All questions tabled to the two Departments received an answer. Information on how many questions were not answered wholly or in part on the grounds of disproportionate cost is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Of the 6,057 written questions, 15 (0.25 per cent.) were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before prorogation (12 of the 15 questions were tabled only two days prior to prorogation).

Town Centres

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what incentives the Government  (a) have in place and  (b) are planning to support (i) small and (ii) specialised businesses to remain open in town centres.

Yvette Cooper: 'Planning Policy Statement 6: Planning for Town Centres' provides a positive framework for promoting and enhancing commercial development in town centres. A copy is available in the Library of the House. It is for local authorities to plan actively for and promote the vitality and viability of their town centres, including the need to enhance consumer choice and make provision for a range of business premises (both small and large), by working closely with local businesses and other key stakeholders. The policy and its supporting guidance on design and implementation tools also promote town centre management and the creation of partnerships to develop, improve and maintain town centres so that businesses can thrive.
	It is not the aim of the planning system to protect or promote individual commercial interests. Incentives for business are primarily for my right. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Contempt of Court

John Hemming: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs 
	(1)  how many people have been held in police cells for more than 24 hours in relation to contempt of court proceedings relating to the family courts in each month starting in January 2004;
	(2)  how many people aged  (a) 18 and over,  (b) 16 to 17,  (c) 14 to 15 and  (d) under 14 were given prison sentences by the family courts in each month since January 2004, broken down by sex; and what the (i) longest, (ii) shortest and (iii) average sentence handed down to those given prison sentences was in this period;
	(3)  how many of those imprisoned after in-camera proceedings in family courts in each month since January 2004  (a) attempted suicide and  (b) succeeded in a suicide attempt in prison.

Harriet Harman: The information requested in relation to contempt of court in family proceedings and attempted or actual suicides following imprisonment after in-camera family proceedings is not collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The only data held concern cases in the county court and High Court for breaches of non-molestation orders and breaches of occupation orders under Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996. Those figures were provided in my answer of 4 July 2006,  Official Report, column 969W. In those cases, the data do not differentiate between remand in custody and sentenced prisoners, nor by age. If a person is arrested for breach of a non-molestation order or breach of an occupation order, the maximum time a person may be held in custody before appearing in court is 24 hours. The court may subsequently order he be remanded. Of those in custody under Part IV, females represent around 5 per cent. or less.

Legal Advice

David Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much has been spent by the Department on external legal advice in each of the last five years.

Harriet Harman: The figures requested are as follows:
	
		
			   Amount (£) 
			 2001-02 421,626 
			 2002—03 755,203 
			 2003-04 2,293,588 
			 2004-05 2,827,314 
			 2005—06 2,363,470 
		
	
	These figures do not include in-house legal advice or advice from Treasury Solicitors or counsel's fees in cases in which counsel are instructed by Treasury Solicitors on DCA's behalf.

Legal Service: Northampton

Sally Keeble: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many lawyers specialising in  (a) housing,  (b) education,  (c) social services for adults and  (d) mental health are there as part of the community legal service in Northampton.

Vera Baird: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) records the number of solicitor firms and not-for-profit organisations who hold contracts to carry out legal aid work rather than numbers of specialist lawyers. The LSC records social services under the category 'community care'.
	In Northampton, two solicitors firms hold mental health contracts. In addition, there are six solicitor firms in Northampton whose contracts allow them to carry out tolerance work (work not confined to a specific category of law) in housing, education and community care.
	One not-for-profit organisation, the Northampton and County Welfare Rights Advice Service, holds a contract to carry out housing work. The contract the LSC has with the Welfare Rights Advice Service, which includes provision of benefits advice through outreach in GPs' surgeries, is the largest LSC contract for social welfare law in the East Midlands. This service provides advice around the county including Wellingborough and East Northamptonshire.
	Since April 2006 the LSC has also funded a scheme at Northampton county court which ensures that emergency advice and representation is available to any resident who has been summonsed to court to face eviction from their home. Northampton and County Welfare Rights Advice Service continues to provide this debt and housing advice service.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Africa Conflict and Humanitarian Unit

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the role of the Africa Conflict and Humanitarian Unit is; how many staff are employed in the unit; how much funding the unit has received in each of the last three financial years; what funding is planned for the unit in each of the next three financial years; in which countries it has been operational since its inception; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The Africa Conflict and Humanitarian Unit (ACHU) was established in 2003 to co-ordinate DFID's humanitarian and conflict prevention work in Africa. It works closely with the central Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department (CHASE) on policy and the overall coherence of DFID's global response. ACHU also provides the secretariat for the joint DFID/FCO/MOD Africa Conflict Prevention Pool (ACPP).
	ACHU has a staff of 10, made up of the Head of the Unit, three humanitarian advisers, two conflict advisers, two programme managers, a programme officer, and an information and communications officer. Two regional conflict advisers, based in Africa, also report to the Head of ACHU. These work jointly to DFID, FCO and MOD under the auspices of the ACPP.
	ACHU does not have its own programme budget, nor is it an operational unit. It is an advisory unit supporting DFID's country and regional offices in Africa, and advising the Africa Director on the use of the divisional reserve to meet humanitarian needs. ACHU is also able to call on the central operational team based in CHASE for back-up support in the event of a major catastrophe or to provide supplementary staff support when work loads are high. DFID provides humanitarian assistance in response to needs across Africa as a whole, not just to those countries where we have a country programme.
	DFID does not work with a fixed budget for humanitarian aid in Africa, but responds according to need and in proportion to the UK's role as a leading humanitarian donor within the international community. Preliminary estimates of likely levels of need are made at the start of each financial year, and adjusted on the basis of ongoing assessments as the year unfolds. For this reason, it is not possible to predict what levels of humanitarian spending are likely over the next three years. We do, though, expect to maintain our position as a leading humanitarian donor.
	Over the past three financial years DFID has spent a total of £565.6 million on bilateral humanitarian aid in Africa: £125.4 million in 2003-04, £171.0 million in 2004-05, and £269.4 million in 2005-06. In the three years since 2003-04, Africa's share of DFID's total bilateral humanitarian assistance has risen from 40.4 per cent. to 65.6 per cent. Humanitarian needs in Africa in 2005-06 were exceptional, and we do not expect spending to be so high in the current financial year.
	In its role as secretariat for the ACPP, ACHU oversees a joint DFID/FCO/MOD budget for conflict prevention work in Africa. Over the past three financial years this has stood at £50.0 million for 2003-04, £60.0 million for 2004-05, and £60.0 million for 2005-06. In the current year the ACPP budget is £63.0 million, rising to £64.5 million in the next financial year. The ACPP budget is currently under review in the context of the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review. The forward budget for conflict prevention work in Africa from 2007-08 onwards is yet to be announced.
	Since its inception, ACHU has supported DFID and wider HMG conflict and humanitarian work throughout sub-Saharan Africa, including in the Gambia, Senegal, Mauritania, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, and South Africa.

HIV/AIDS

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much  (a) bilateral and  (b) multilateral funding has been provided by the UK for HIV/AIDS (i) prevention and (ii) treatment in India in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement

Gareth Thomas: The information is as follows:
	 (a) DFID has committed a total of £123 million to support the second phase of the Government of India's National AIDS Control Programme (NACP 2) over the period 2000 to 2007. Of this, £90 million will have been spent by March 2007. The remaining funds will be rolled into DFID's support to the third phase of the programme which will begin in April 2007 and to which DFID is planning to commit additional resources.
	Most of the current funding goes through the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) to eight focus states: Orissa, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Part of DFID's funding is also provided through a challenge fund directly to non-government organisations, in order to fill gaps in the national programme. DFID's support is primarily for implementing prevention interventions, including focused education and behaviour change programmes for people at high risk of HIV, such as truckers, female sex workers, men having sex with men and injecting drug users. However, activities to support the expansion of care and support to people with HIV, including the training of health workers and development of networks of positive people, are also funded. DFID encourages comprehensive programmes including prevention, treatment, and care. It is not possible to attribute the proportion of funds going to each specific component.
	 (b) DFID provides significant funding to UNAIDS in India (£5.9 million from 2001 to March 2007) to strengthen the UN response to HIV and AIDS. During NACP 2 DFID has also committed £9.1 million to other UN agencies including UNICEF for work on HIV education among adolescents, UNDP for work on prevention of trafficking and HIV in women and girls and UNODC for expanding prevention of HIV among drug users.
	In addition, the UK is a major contributor to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria, which has approved programmes in India of over US $492 million over a five-year period. GFATM funds are an integral part of the overall resource framework for the next phase of the National AIDS Control Programme, and will enable the Government of India to scale up access to antiretroviral treatment from the current low base—to reach the goal of 340,000 people on treatment, including 40,000 children.

Quality of Governance Assessment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what quantitative measures are used in the Quality of Governance Assessment.

Gareth Thomas: DFID will assess the quality of governance in partner countries through its Country Governance Analyses. These will refer to a balanced set of international and national qualitative and quantitative indicators, assessment and analytical reports that are in the public domain.
	Where available, quantitative measures will include the World Bank Institute's 'Worldwide Governance Indicators', the World Bank's 'International Development Association Resource Allocation Index' (formerly 'Country Policy and Institutional Assessment'), a selection of World Health Organisation and World Bank 'World Development Indicators' health, education and economic measures, Freedom House's indicators on the media and civil and political rights, the Centre for International Development and Conflict Management's 'Polity IV' index on regime and authority characteristics, the Inter-Parliamentary Union's index on women in national parliaments and Transparency International's 'Corruption Perception Index'.
	These quantitative measures will be used alongside other relevant qualitative indicators, assessments and analytical reports to develop a shared understanding of the long-term trends in governance in our partner countries.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the security situation in Helmand province in Afghanistan since October.

Des Browne: The security situation in Helmand remains stable. October and November saw a significant decrease in the number of contacts between UK troops and opposition forces compared with previous months although the number of engagements with the Taliban has increased recently.

Combined Cadet Force

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 28 November 2006,  Official Report, column 621W, on school cadet forces, what his timetable is for  (a) updating the House on the proposal to create branches of the Combined Cadet Force in state schools and  (b) naming the schools in which pilot projects will run; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: Discussions referred to in my answer of 28 November 2006,  Official Report, column 621W, are now almost complete. I intend to make an announcement to the House, revealing the names of the new Combined Cadet Force contingents in the near future.

Defence Export Services Organisation

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 24 April 2006,  Official Report, column 821W, on the Defence Export Services Organisation, what the total salary of all the staff working in the Defence Export Services Organisation was  (a) in 2005 and  (b) 2006; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: Defence Export Services Organisation staff costs for 2005-06 are shown in the following table. Forecast costs are given for 2006-07. The receipts shown accrue from Government-to-Government projects, where costs are met by the customer Government.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Financial year 
			   2005-06  2006-07 
			 Expenditure 26.1 25.7 
			 Receipts -13.1 -12.9 
			 Net staff costs 13.0 12.8

Faslane

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) civilian and  (b) service personnel are employed at (i) Faslane naval base and (ii) RNAD Coulport.

Adam Ingram: Individual defence installations do not routinely publish personnel data, as different organisations and agencies are responsible for the same location or site. Figures for the posted location of the UK regular forces and civilians are only available at local authority level using centrally held data.
	Estimates below this level are not routinely produced but a broad estimate of MOD civilian staff in full-time equivalent (FTE) terms is shown in the following table. These figures do not include the workforce of Babcock Naval Services, the commercial partner of HMNB Clyde, who employ additional civilian personnel spread across both sites. Estimates provided by Babcock Naval Services put the total of these personnel at around 1,430.
	
		
			  UK civilian personnel (FTE) by local authority area: 1 November 2006 
			   Total 
			 Scotland 6,700 
			   
			  Argyll and Bute 1,820 
			 Faslane 1,080 
			 Coulport 670 
			  Notes:  1. Full-time equivalency totals that take account of the hours worked by each part-time employee, and will not be consistent with a headcount.  2. Due to the rounding methods used, totals may not always equal the sum of the parts. When rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.  Dasa (Civilian) 
		
	
	For service personnel figures for Argyll and Bute, where the vast majority of service personnel posted are located in Faslane and Coulport, are published in Tri Service Publication 10 (TSP10). TSP 10 is a quarterly publication, the most recent showing the 1 October 2006 situation. Copies are held in the Library of the house and at
	http://www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tspl0/tspl0tabl2.html.

Infantry Recruitment

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the intake has been into each infantry battalion in each of the past 12 months.

Derek Twigg: The Army does not recruit soldiers into infantry battalions. The Army Recruiting and Training Division, which is responsible for the recruitment and training of soldiers, recruit infantry soldiers to the three infantry career employment groups; namely line by each infantry division, parachute and Guards. Therefore intake figures for infantry battalions are unavailable.
	The following table provides regular Army soldier untrained intake figures to each division of the Infantry during the past 12 months:
	
		
			  Date of flow  Footguards  Scottish Division  Queen's Division  King's Division  Prince of Wales' Division 
			 October 2005 40 30 20 20 30 
			 November 2005 50 50 50 40 40 
			 December 2005 (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 January 2006 150 100 120 110 130 
			 February 2006 40 30 50 50 30 
			 March 2006 50 30 40 (1)— (1)— 
			 April 2006 (1)— 30 90 40 70 
			 May 2006 50 30 40 50 (1)— 
			 June 2006 50 (1)— 40 40 (1)— 
			 July 2006 50 40 40 20 40 
			 August 2006 80 60 90 80 120 
			 September 2006 100 50 110 100 80 
			 Total 670 460 690 550 550 
		
	
	
		
			  Date of flow  Light Division  Royal Irish (General Service)  The Parachute Regiment  Total 
			 October 2005 30 10 (1)— 190 
			 November 2005 90 (1)— 50 360 
			 December 2005 (1)— (1)— (1)— 10 
			 January 2006 120 10 70 820 
			 February 2006 20 (1)— (1)— 230 
			 March 2006 40 10 50 220 
			 April 2006 — (1)— 40 280 
			 May 2006 80 10 40 310 
			 June 2006 50 (1)— (1)— 180 
			 July 2006 80 10 (1)— 290 
			 August 2006 50 (1)— 60 540 
			 September 2006 140 (1)— 110 680 
			 Total 710 60 420 4,100 
			 (1) Denotes zero or rounded to zero.  Notes: 1. Figures are for UK regular soldiers only. They exclude full time reserve service personnel, Gurkhas, the Home Service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment and mobilised Reservists. 2. The data are based on the number of soldiers joining the untrained strength of the infantry divisions during the period 1 October 2005 and 30 September 2006. The figures also include untrained soldiers returning from being long-term illegally absent. 3. The data have been rounded to the nearest 10, numbers ending in '5' have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to avoid systematic bias. Totals have been rounded separately and therefore may not be equal to the sum of their parts.

Iraq

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any individuals arrested and detained by UK armed forces in Iraq and subsequently transferred to  (a) US authorities and  (b) Iraqi authorities may be subsequently transferred to the authority of another state, including detention in another country, without the prior written agreement of the UK.

Des Browne: holding answer 18 December 2006
	No individual arrested and detained by UK forces in Iraq will be transferred to US authorities without prior written agreement governing the terms and conditions of such transfer.
	The Memorandum of Understanding between the UK contingent of the Multinational Force in Iraq and the Iraqi Ministries of Justice and Interior governing the transfer of individuals detained in Iraq by UK forces contains no provisions on the possible further transfer of such persons. However, the Constitution of Iraq prevents the Government of Iraq from surrendering any Iraqi national to foreign entities and authorities.

Iraq

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many cases of abuse, ill treatment or death of Iraqi detainees involving British troops are  (a) being investigated by the Royal Military Police and  (b) being considered for prosecution;
	(2)  how many cases involving  (a) the death of and  (b) the abuse of an Iraqi detainee in British custody have been dropped through lack of evidence since 2003;
	(3)  how many  (a) officers and  (b) other ranks of the Queen's Lancashire regiment and its successor are being investigated by the Royal Military Police's Special Investigation Branch.

Des Browne: Since the start of operations in Iraq in 2003, 41 investigations have been conducted by the Royal Military Police into the alleged abuse, ill treatment or death of Iraqi detainees. Of these, 35 cases have been closed due to insufficient evidence, two cases have been dealt with by courts-martial, one case is currently being tried by general court-martial at Bulford, one case has been dealt with summarily by the Commanding Officer and two investigations are ongoing.
	Of the 35 cases closed due to insufficient evidence, 32 have been closed with no further action recommended; two cases were referred to the Army Prosecuting Authority who decided not to institute court-martial proceedings; the remaining case went to court-martial, which was stayed and then referred to the Crown Prosecuting Authority which decided not to prefer charges.
	The Royal Military Police (Special Investigation Branch) is currently carrying out investigations that involve one officer and three other ranks from the Queen's Lancashire Regiment and its successor, the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment. However, none of these investigations are Iraq-related.

Non-lethal Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  in what circumstances military personnel use non-lethal weapons on operations;
	(2)  what types of non-lethal weapons may be used in current military operations.

Des Browne: UK military personnel use non-lethal weapons primarily on public order operations such as crowd control, when the safety of personnel needs to be protected but the use of lethal force would not be appropriate. This role has been fulfilled in Northern Ireland in support of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, and in overseas operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans. Depending on circumstances, UK military personnel may use batons, plastic baton rounds and CS smoke.

Non-lethal Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2006,  Official Report, column 882W, on non-lethal operations, what the policy reasons are for non-lethal spray type weapons not being routinely carried by British forces during operations.

Adam Ingram: Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, non-lethal spray weapons such as CS smoke may only be used for law enforcement, including domestic riot control purposes and are therefore unsuitable for use on many types of operations carried out by British forces.

Nuclear Weapons

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether simulations and experiments at the strategic Sandia laboratories in New Mexico were carried out in support of the UK's Trident missile system; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: Under the terms of the 1958 UK/US Mutual Defence Agreement (Cm 537, as amended), the Ministry of Defence and the Atomic Weapons Establishment maintain collaborative contact with Sandia National Laboratories, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, and the Los Alamos National Laboratories.
	This contact, which may include the placement of specific work packages with the US facilities by or on behalf of HMG, principally relates to the stockpile stewardship programmes that ensure the continued safety and reliability of the UK's nuclear weapons stockpile. I am withholding further details of such activities as their release would, or would be likely to, prejudice national security.

Nuclear Weapons

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether there will be an increase in his Department's budget to finance the new nuclear deterrent proposed in the White Paper "The future of the United Kingdom's nuclear deterrent"; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: I have nothing further to add to paragraph 5-15 of the White Paper "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent" (Cm 6994), published on 4 December 2006.

Nuclear Weapons

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to paragraph B-14 of "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent", 
	(1)  what level of investment in research and development there will be on effective counter-measures to monitor submarine movements;
	(2)  whether the cost of investment in research and development on effective counter-measures to monitor submarine movements is included in the estimated operating cost of 5 to 6 per cent. of his Department's budget.

Des Browne: Our overall strategy for investment in research and development is set out in the Defence Technology Strategy, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. The technologies relevant to ensuring effective counter-measures to attempted monitoring of submarine movement have been identified as priorities in both the Cross-Cutting Technologies section (B2) and the Maritime section (Bl1). The MOD invests in these technologies for anti-submarine warfare and, under current plans, will continue an appropriate level of investment.
	No specific allowance has been made for the costs of such continuing investment in the estimate of the expected in-service costs of the UK's nuclear deterrent once a new fleet of SSBNs comes into service, set out at paragraph 5-14 of the White Paper: "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent" (Cm 6994), although the estimate makes allowance for the cost of mid-life update of the submarines and also for financial risks and uncertainties.

Nuclear Weapons

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the costs of  (a) D5 nuclear missiles and  (b) other ballistic missiles;
	(2)  what assessments were made of alternative  (a) ballistic and  (b) cruise missiles other than those referred to in the White Paper "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent".

Des Browne: I have nothing further to add to paragraphs 5-10 and B-4 and Box 5-1 of the White Paper "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent" (Cm 6994), published on 4 December 2006.

Nuclear Weapons

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the US Administration on providing submarines for the Trident project.

Des Browne: As stated at paragraph 6-3 of the White Paper 'The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent' (Cm 6994), published on 4 December 2006,
	"It would be our intention to build the new SSBNs [ballistic missile submarines] in the UK, for reasons of national sovereignty, nuclear regulation, operational effectiveness and safety, and maintenance of key skills."
	The outcome of discussions with the US on future co-operation in this area is set out in the exchange of letters between the Prime Minister and President of the United States, published on 19 December 2006. Copies of the letters are available in the Library of the House.

Royal Marines

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the number of personnel in the Royal Marines was on  (a) 1 December 1997 and  (b) 1 December 2006.

Derek Twigg: The number of personnel in the Royal Marines in December 1997 and November 2006 (the latest date for which figures are available) is as follows:
	
		
			   December 1997  November 2006( 1,2) 
			 Total 6,790 7,450 
			
			 Officers 690 810 
			 Trained 610 670 
			 Untrained 80 140 
			
			 Ratings 6,100 6,640 
			 Trained 5,450 5,820 
			 Untrained 660 820 
			 (1) December 2006 figures have not yet been compiled, hence data for November 2006 are provided. (2) Due to a new personnel administration system being introduced to the naval service during October 2006, the figures for November 2006 are provisional and subject to revision.

Royal Navy: Joint Personnel Administration

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Navy personnel were  (a) overpaid and  (b) underpaid by Joint Personnel Administration in the first two months of roll-out; and if he will make a statement on the roll-out of Joint Personnel Administration to the Royal Navy.

Derek Twigg: In November 9,618 Royal Navy (RN) personnel were overpaid. 9,209 of these were due to the application of an incorrect tax rate resulting in overpayments averaging £200 per individual; the remaining 409 errors were for RN reservists who were paid twice for training nights. Both of these errors were corrected in December payroll.
	In addition some 2,289 cases of RN underpayment were identified. 1,889 of these were due to an existing issue with payroll scheduling which was not identified until the RN release: some 1,678 Royal Air Force personnel were also affected by this underpayment issue, the average value of which was £50 to £100 per person. All identified errors have been corrected in the December pay run. Of the remaining underpayments, 400 new recruits were delayed payments due to incorrect data entry at the recruiting units but these errors along with those for 71 reserve officer payments resulting from a Joint Personnel Administration (JPA) system error, were corrected in month.
	To date there are no known systematic under/overpayments issues for RN December pay.

Suicides

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the rate of suicide is among UK armed forces personnel who have seen active service in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence has centrally compiled and verified records of coroner-confirmed suicides or open verdict deaths among UK service personnel up to 31 December 2005. Between 18 January 2003 and 31 December 2005, there were 17 coroner-confirmed suicides or open verdict deaths among UK regular armed forces deployed on Operation Telic since 18 January 2003. This includes deaths both in theatre and since their return, among the approximate 100,000 personnel deployed during this period. During this period, there were a further 40 suicides or open verdict deaths among those who were not deployed on Operation Telic. Verdicts have yet to be reached for 19 other deaths thought to be due to violent or unnatural causes (excluding accidents), six of which involve personnel who were deployed on Operation Telic during this period.
	These data represent a crude rate of 8.7 suicides and open verdict deaths per 100,000 person-years-at-risk for those who were deployed at some time to Operation Telic. This compares to a rate of 12.7 suicides and open verdict deaths per 100,000 person-years-at-risk among those who were not deployed to Operation Telic. The difference between these two rates is not statistically significant.
	It is not possible to distinguish between those who saw active service in Iraq from those deployed on Operation Telic who were based in other countries of the Joint Operational Area. Although there has been one case among the reservists in theatre, information on reservists is not available after they have been demobilised following their return to the UK.
	There have been no coroner-confirmed suicides or open verdict deaths in Afghanistan among personnel deployed there. Information on deaths among these personnel since their return from theatre is not currently available.
	The figures provided do not include any violent or unnatural deaths that have not yet been fully investigated by the coroner.

Transport Aircraft

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) in service,  (b) fit for purpose and  (c) available for immediate deployment (i) C-17A Globemaster, (ii) Hercules C-130, (iii) Tristar and (iv) VC10 fleets there are.

Adam Ingram: The table shows the numbers of C17 Globemaster, Hercules C130, Tristar and VC10 aircraft that are planned to be in service at end March 2007 and that were fit for purpose last month.
	
		
			  Aircraft type  Total fleet planned to be in service FY 2006-07  Numbers of aircraft fit for purpose (average for November 2006)( 1) 
			 C17 Globemaster 4 3 
			 Hercules C130K (2)25 10 
			 Hercules C130J 25 16 
			 Tristar 9 6 
			 VC10 16 9 
			 (1) Figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. (2) Does not reflect the loss of XV206 in Afghanistan on 24 May 2006 or the retirement of four aircraft during FY 2006-07. 
		
	
	Aircraft that are available for immediate deployment are fit for purpose; they are capable of undertaking the required task on a given day. Aircraft are not available for tasking if they are undergoing scheduled maintenance, modification programmes or any other unforeseen rectification work that can arise on a day-to-day basis. The figures do not reflect the fact that an aircraft assessed as not fit for purpose may be returned to the front line at very short notice to meet the operational need.

Veterans Lapel Badge

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many veterans in Bassetlaw constituency are entitled to receive the HM Armed Forces Veterans Lapel Badge.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence does not hold data on the number of veterans entitled to receive the Veterans Badge by parliamentary constituency. However, I can confirm that approximately 3,000 badges have been issued to veterans who reside in Nottinghamshire.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

European Union

Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, column 18W, on the European Union, whether the European Commission has provided the Government with any information on the cost of European regulation to UK businesses.

Patrick McFadden: The European Commission does not provide the Government with such information. However, the Government have provided the European Commission with data from their administrative burdens measurement exercise to assist with the development of its strategy to measure and set a target to reduce administrative burdens in the European Union. The results of Government's measurement exercise were published on 11 December 2006 alongside 500 simplification proposals which, based on the data, should lead to an estimated reduction in administrative burdens of £2 billion.

Futurebuilders Scheme

Tim Loughton: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if she will list the grants paid out under the Futurebuilders scheme; and what the amount was of each.

Edward Miliband: Futurebuilders investments are primarily loans-based. However, investment packages may include a grant element for capacity building or development.
	To date 179 organisations have been offered Futurebuilders investments totalling over £68 million. Of this, £55 million has been offered as loan funding and £13 million as grant funding.
	Investee organisations have so far drawn down a mixture of grant and loan funding totalling £15.9 million from the overall £68 million. A table showing the breakdown of each investment package and sums drawn down has been placed in the Library for the reference of Members.
	Futurebuilders England (FBE) seeks consent from all of the organisations that it funds to publicise their investment. In some cases (those referred to numerically) this consent has not been given as yet either because the deal is still being discussed with the investee and has not yet been accepted, or because the organisation has specifically asked that FBE does not publicise their project. Organisations who do not want FBE to publicise their project do so for a number of reasons. For example, they may be in the midst of negotiations to purchase a property and would regard details of the investment as commercially sensitive, or are engaged in sensitive work such as running a women's refuge and do not want to publicise their work or their location.

Renewable Energy

Charles Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, column 189W, on renewable energy, what plans her Department has to increase the amount of energy acquired from renewable sources.

Edward Miliband: The Cabinet Office has exceeded the target set for individual Government Departments to source at least 10 per cent. of electricity from renewable sources by 31 March 2008. There are currently no plans to increase the amount of electricity purchased from renewable sources.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many antisocial behaviour orders were issued by Humberside police force in the last five years; and how many of them were breached in each year;
	(2)  how many people were jailed for the breach of an antisocial behaviour order issued by Humberside police force in the last five years;
	(3)  what average number of antisocial behaviour orders was issued by police forces in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

John Reid: Antisocial behaviour orders are issued by the courts. ASBOs may be issued on application or conviction. Those issued on application may be applied for by the police or other relevant authorities. The available information is given in the tables.
	
		
			  Table A: Number of ASBOs issued at all courts, as notified to the Home Office by the Court Service, in the Humberside( 1)  criminal justice system area, on application and conviction, 1 June 2000( 2)  to 30 September 2005 (latest available) 
			   Issued following application by:   
			  Period  Police  Other applicants  Total  Issued on conviction  Total issued 
			 June-December 2000 9 — 9 n/a 9 
			 2001 — 4 4 n/a 4 
			 2002 — 4 4 — 4 
			 2003 2 2 4 2 6 
			 2004 14 10 24 42 66 
			 January- September 2005 15 17 32 69 101 
			 Total 40 37 77 113 190 
			 n/a = not applicable (1) Coterminous with the Humberside police force area. (2) Prior to this date ASBO data were collected on aggregate numbers only.  Note: Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Number of ASBOs issued in Humberside and proven in court to have been breached, as reported to the Home Office, in each year from 1 June 2000( 1)  to 30 September 2005 
			ASBO breached 
			  Period  Total issued  Total in each year( 1)  Persons given a custodial sentence on at least one occasion( 2) 
			 From June 2000(3) 9 1 — 
			 2001 4 1 — 
			 2002 4 3 2 
			 2003 6 6 4 
			 2004 66 n/a n/a 
			 To September 2005 101 n/a n/a 
			 Total 190 11 6 
			 n/a = not currently available. (1) An ASBO can be issued in one year and breached in another. Also one of the ASBOs given in the table was breached in two different years and is counted in both. (2) The year is determined by the occasion of the severest penalty, which may or may not correspond to the occasion of the first breach. (3) Prior to this date data on ASBO issues were collected on aggregate numbers only. None were reported as being issued in the Humberside police force area during the period.  Note:  Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table C: The number and average number of ASBOs issued at all courts in England and Wales, as notified to the Home Office by the Court Service, 1 June 2000( 1)  to 30 September 2005 (latest available) 
			   Issued following application by:
			  Period  Police  Other applicant  Total  Issued on conviction  Total issued  Average number issued( 2) 
			 2000 (June to December) 66 69 135 n/a 135 3 
			 2001 99 224 323 n/a 323 8 
			 2002 140 263 403 1 404 10 
			 2003 133 448 581 462 1,043 25 
			 2004 230 770 1,000 1,668 2,668 64 
			 2005 (January to September) 193 616 809 1,870 2,679 64 
			 Total 861 2,390 3,251 4,001 7,252 173 
			 n/a = not applicable (1) Prior to this date ASBO data were collected on aggregate numbers only. (2) Across the 42 criminal justice system areas. Figures have been rounded to the nearest whole number.  Note:  Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Asylum Seekers

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of asylum seekers who arrived in the United Kingdom between 2005 and 2006 now reside in Scotland.

Liam Byrne: The percentage of asylum seekers who arrived in the United Kingdom between 2005 and 2006 who now reside in Scotland is not available and could only be produced at disproportionate cost.
	Statistics on the location of asylum seekers in the UK are linked to the available information on the support that the asylum seeker receives. The number of asylum seekers in receipt of support from IND are published on a quarterly and annual basis, broken down by Government Office Region and local authority. The latest publication covering the third quarter of 2006 is available on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.
	Further breakdowns by parliamentary constituency are also available from the Library of the House.

Asylum Seekers

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Ugandan nationals have applied for political asylum in the UK in the last 10 years; and how many of these applications have been turned down.

Liam Byrne: Information on asylum applications, grants of asylum at initial decision and appeal outcomes for Ugandan nationals is published quarterly and annually. Copies are available from the Library of the House and on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
	http://homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.
	Information on how many of those applications lodged in the last 10 years have been turned down is not available.

Asylum Seekers

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Ugandan nationals whose applications for asylum in the UK were subsequently turned down had indicated during the application process that they belonged to the opposition Forum for Democratic Change.

Liam Byrne: The requested information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records.
	Information on asylum applications, grants of asylum at initial decision and appeal outcomes for Ugandan nationals is published quarterly and annually. Copies are available from the Library of the House and on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to which countries it is his Department's policy not to return failed asylum seekers.

Liam Byrne: All asylum claims are considered on an individual basis, and we would not seek to remove an individual who has been found to be in need of international protection. We expect failed asylum seekers to return voluntarily. There is no country to which as a matter of policy we do not seek to enforce return but we are not currently enforcing returns to Zimbabwe pending the resolution of litigation. It remains our intention to resume such returns as soon as possible.

Asylum Seekers

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department will make a decision on the asylum application of Mr. Erion Remiraj, reference D1018757.

Liam Byrne: I wrote to the hon. Member on 3 January 2007.

Asylum Seekers

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements his Department has made for the teaching of English to those seeking asylum within the United Kingdom; and what discussions his Department has had with  (a) the Department for Education and Skills and  (b) the Learning and Skills Council on English language courses for asylum seekers and the funding arrangements for them.

Liam Byrne: Arrangements for the teaching of English are a matter for the Department for Education and Skills, although the application to asylum seekers of the recently announced changes in eligibility for free tuition was of course discussed with the Home Office.

Burglary and Violence Convictions

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of people convicted of  (a) burglary and  (b) violence against the person were sent to prison in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of these were sent to prison for their first offence.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is contained in the table.
	The most recent custody information for first-time offenders was published in October 2005 in "Sentencing Statistics 2004", Home Office Statistical Bulletin No. 15/05. This report is available online at http:// www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/ hosb1505.pdf. The percentage of first-time offenders sentenced to custody can be found in Table 6.6.
	Figures for first-time offenders sentenced to custody by offence group are not readily available.
	
		
			  Persons sentenced to immediate custody for offences of burglary and violence against the person, England and Wales 
			  Percentage 
			   Burglary  Violence against the person 
			 1996 42 31 
			 1997 45 30 
			 1998 47 30 
			 1999 49 31 
			 2000 51 32 
			 2001 51 32 
			 2002 51 31 
			 2003 47 30 
			 2004 45 31 
			 2005 42 32 
			  Note: Although care is taken in collating and analysing the returns used to compile these figures, the data are of necessity subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system. Consequently, although figures are shown to the last digit in order to provide a comprehensive record of the information collected, they are not necessarily accurate to the last digit shown.  Source: RDS-NOMS, Home Office.

Community Support Officers

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers were planned to be delivered in each police area under the target to introduce 24,000 officers; and how many will be delivered in each area under the plan for 16,000.

John Reid: Table A gives the estimated number each force would have employed by March 2008 to achieve a national target of 24,000 police community support officers (PCSOs). A written ministerial statement on 27 November announced changes to this plan in the light of the progress that the police service has made towards delivering neighbourhood policing and requests from the service for greater flexibility. Table B gives the number to be delivered by April 2007 to achieve a national target of 16,000 PCSOs for 2007-08.
	
		
			  Table A: Estimate for 24,000 PCSOs England and Wales 
			   March 2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 541 
			 Bedfordshire 199 
			 Cambridgeshire 287 
			 Cheshire 353 
			 City of London 118 
			 Cleveland 215 
			 Cumbria 170 
			 Derbyshire 288 
			 Devon and Cornwall 535 
			 Dorset 236 
			 Durham 263 
			 Dyfed-Powys 123 
			 Essex 547 
			 Gloucestershire 252 
			 Greater Manchester 1,238 
			 Gwent 221 
			 Hampshire 539 
			 Hertfordshire 369 
			 Humberside 332 
			 Kent 571 
			 Lancashire 630 
			 Leicestershire 350 
			 Lincolnshire 233 
			 Merseyside 742 
			 Metropolitan 6,389 
			 Norfolk 280 
			 North Wales 248 
			 North Yorkshire 269 
			 Northamptonshire 213 
			 Northumbria 671 
			 Nottinghamshire 406 
			 South Wales 511 
			 South Yorkshire 521 
			 Staffordshire 339 
			 Suffolk 216 
			 Surrey 329 
			 Sussex 525 
			 Thames Valley 675 
			 Warwickshire 202 
			 West Mercia 388 
			 West Midlands 1,187 
			 West Yorkshire 1,097 
			 Wiltshire 206 
			 Total 24,024 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Target 16,000 PCSOs 
			   April 2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 346 
			 Bedfordshire 128 
			 Cambridgeshire 195 
			 Cheshire 237 
			 City of London 52 
			 Cleveland 122 
			 Cumbria 105 
			 Derbyshire 160 
			 Devon and Cornwall 356 
			 Dorset 162 
			 Durham 172 
			 Dyfed-Powys 62 
			 Essex 362 
			 Gloucestershire 178 
			 Greater Manchester 828 
			 Gwent 129 
			 Hampshire 333 
			 Hertfordshire 252 
			 Humberside 210 
			 Kent 382 
			 Lancashire 417 
			 Leicestershire 229 
			 Lincolnshire 149 
			 Merseyside 466 
			 Metropolitan 4,562 
			 Norfolk 189 
			 North Wales 157 
			 North Yorkshire 183 
			 Northamptonshire 138 
			 Northumbria 432 
			 Nottinghamshire 257 
			 South Wales 325 
			 South Yorkshire 328 
			 Staffordshire 209 
			 Suffolk 142 
			 Surrey 222 
			 Sussex 354 
			 Thames Valley 417 
			 Warwickshire 139 
			 West Mercia 270 
			 West Midlands 751 
			 West Yorkshire 760 
			 Wiltshire 135 
			 Total 16,002

Compensation Payments

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much in compensation payments was paid by his Department in 2005-06; and what the reason for the payment was in each case.

Liam Byrne: An answer could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.

Cyber-terrorism

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether data is shared between the Serious Organised Crime Agency's e-crime unit and the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre.

Vernon Coaker: Information is shared regularly between NISCC and SOCA's e-crime unit.
	Additionally, a member of e-crime is seconded to work with NISCC. NISCC is a full participating member of the National e-Crime Strategy Group (NESG), chaired by SOCA, which draws together law enforcement in its widest sense to contribute to setting and sharing best practice. There are also regular meetings at management level between both organisations.

Departmental Computer Data

David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any of his Department's  (a) computer data and  (b) computer backup data is stored with online data storage providers.

Liam Byrne: The Home Office does store both data and back-up data with online data storage providers. Currently this includes an e-procurement tendering portal solution and a staff competency assessment system.
	The Home Office has agreed process and procedures for handling this data, including notification to staff of use, with the respective hosting companies and all data stored on-line is protected within these commercial agreements.

Drug Users: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many drug users are registered with the Peterborough drug intervention programme; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 8 January 2007
	Peterborough is a Drug Interventions Programme (DIP) "intensive" area—which means that all aspects of the programme are in place there. These include drug testing for heroin and crack/cocaine following arrest for "trigger offences", or any offence where a police officer of inspector rank or above suspects the misuse of such drugs caused or contributed to the offence. For those who test positive there is a requirement to attend an initial assessment with a drugs worker and, where applicable, restrictions on bail are used to encourage offenders to address their drug misuse problems. Other features of the programme are the case management of offenders and the brokering of access to other service such as housing or training support.
	The DIP management information system indicates that, in September 2006, the cumulative caseload for Peterborough Drug Action Team area stood at 99 clients. In this context, being on the caseload means that individuals are being case-managed by drug workers, having been assessed as requiring interventions which are agreed in a specific care plan. The drugs worker will ensure that there is at all times co-ordination of the care plan. In addition to drug treatment this may include support with issues relating to accommodation, finances and rebuilding family relationships. The cumulative caseload will change as new clients are engaged and existing ones no longer require management or are temporarily suspended while their management is supervised elsewhere.
	Drug-related crime is falling. Acquisitive crime, to which drug-related crime makes a substantial contribution, fell by almost 16 per cent. between April 4 and March 6.

Fireworks Act

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there have been under the Fireworks Act 2003; and what representations he has received on behalf of animal owners concerned about the impact of fireworks.

Vernon Coaker: Information from the court proceedings database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform on the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates court, for offences under the Fireworks Act 2003 in England and Wales 2005, can be viewed in the following table.
	In addition, penalty notices for disorder (PND) can be issued for a range of offences under the Fireworks Act 2003. The offences of breach of the fireworks curfew, possession of category four fireworks, and possession by a person under 18 of an adult firework were added to the PND scheme on 11 October 2004. Persons committing these offences can receive a fixed penalty of £80. The number of persons issued with penalty notices for disorder for firework offences in England and Wales in 2005, and provisional data for January to June 2006, can also be viewed in the following table.
	DEFRA has received various correspondence from animal owners concerned about the impact of fireworks.
	
		
			  Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates court for offences under the Fireworks Act 2003 in England Wales, 2005( 1,2) 
			  Statute  Offence description  Proceeded against 
			 Fireworks Act 2003 S.11 (3)(a)(b),(4) Knowingly or recklessly making a statement which is false in a material particular when a requirement to give information is imposed by or under fireworks regulations. (3)— 
			 Fireworks Act 2003 S. 11 (1 )(4) Contravening a prohibition imposed by fireworks regulations. 90 
			 Fireworks Act 2003 s.11 (2)(4) Failure to comply with a requirement imposed in or under fireworks regulations to give or not give information. 4 
			 Total  94 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2 )Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3 )Nil  Source:  RDS Office for Criminal Justice Reform

Foreign Prisoners

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the letter of 12 December 2006 from the Director General of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate to the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee on foreign prisoners and deportation, what the prior convictions were of the 216 foreign prisoners in respect of whom a decision not to pursue deportation has been made.

John Reid: Information on all prior convictions for each of the 216 foreign national prisoners referred to in the Director General's letter of 12 December 2006 is not held centrally and could be obtained only by searching individual records at a disproportionate cost.

Gershon Review

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much in efficiency savings was made in his Department and its associated public bodies as a result of the Gershon Review; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: My Department reported estimated gains of £1,972 million, of which £1,318 is cashable to the Home Affairs Committee on 12 December 2006. This means that we have achieved our target to achieve £1,970 million by 2007-08 as described in the Gershon Review.
	The Home Office remains committed to delivering value for money including through improvements in front line delivery, better procurement and more effective support services; and improving internal processes and driving productivity in the HQ.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigration detainees held other than at Harmondsworth and assessed as  (a) low,  (b) medium and  (c) high risk were bailed as a result of the disturbances at Harmondsworth on 30 November; and with how many the Immigration and Nationality Directorate has now lost contact.

John Reid: Following the Harmondsworth disturbances a relocation of low risk detainees within the detention estate took place and a total of fifty non-Harmondsworth detainees were granted bail after appropriate assessment. No breaches of reporting conditions have been advised to date.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the private contractor running Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre is financially liable for  (a) damage caused to the facility in the disturbances on 29 November and  (b) costs incurred by the Home Office in bringing the disturbances under control.

John Reid: Harmondsworth IRC is fully insured. Harmondsworth Detention Services Ltd., which operates the Centre under contract with the Secretary of State for the Home Department, is liable for a share of the policy deductible. I am considering any potential liabilities of the Contractor and the insurers in relation to the costs of bringing the disturbance under control.

Harmondsworth Centre

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were on duty at Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre on  (a) 28 and  (b) 29 November; and how many (i) Home Office and (ii) police staff were used to bring the disturbances under control.

John Reid: The number of contractor staff on duty between 19:30 on 28 November and 06:00 on 29 November was 76. The number of Immigration Service staff on duty at Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre on 28 November was seven and on the 29 November it was nine.
	A total of 224 HM Prison Service staff were deployed to bring the disturbance under control and a number of Metropolitan Police officers were involved in both securing the perimeter of the building and escorting detainees from the centre once the disturbance was brought under control.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many EU nationals were  (a) convicted in England and Wales for (i) trafficking and (ii) facilitating illegal entry and  (b) deported without charge following investigations into such activity in each of the last three years.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 19 December 2006
	To date we have seen 30 convictions for trafficking for sexual exploitation under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in England and Wales. Four of these convictions have involved EU nationals.
	At the present time, IND-UKIS Border Control has no centrally collated data on the numbers of EU nationals convicted for facilitating illegal entry. This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	EEA nationals cannot be deported without charge as EEA nationals and their dependants are exempt from administrative removal under section 10 of the 1999 Immigration Act.

Human Trafficking

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2006 to the hon. Member for Ochil and South Perthshire,  Official Report, columns 833-4W, on people trafficking, when he expects a decision to be made on whether the Government will sign the European Convention on action against trafficking in human beings; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The UK fully supports the multiple aims of the Convention and participated actively in the negotiations.
	The Home Secretary is at present giving the matter his fullest consideration and will be writing to colleagues in Government in the near future. There are no time limits within which signature must take place.
	The UK Government are firmly committed to tackling trafficking in human beings, domestically and internationally. Plans were published in November for a new joint venture between SOCA and the Immigration Service to tackle organised immigration crime and we have recently established a new UK Human Trafficking Centre to coordinate action in this area.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many employees were dismissed for incompetence at the Immigration and Nationality Directorate in each of the last five years, broken down by grade.

John Reid: The number of staff who have been dismissed under our performance management procedures since 1 January 2005 is four, broken down by grade in the following table.
	Data prior to January 2005 is not available.
	
		
			   Number of staff 
			  2005  
			 Grade AA 2 
			 Grade SGB2 1 
			   
			  2006  
			 Grade AA 1

Leave to Remain

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will break down by nationality the number of persons granted indefinite leave to remain under the family indefinite leave to remain exercise announced by his predecessor on 24 October 2003.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 19 December 2006
	The following table shows the top 20 nationalities of persons granted indefinite leave to remain under the terms of the family indefinite leave to remain exercise as at 30 September 2006, which is the latest date for which information has been published.
	Further information on the Family ILR exercise is published in quarterly web pages and in the annual statistical bulletin, Asylum Statistics United Kingdom.
	Copies of these publications and others relating to general immigration to the UK are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html
	
		
			  Grants of ILR issued under the IND Family ILR exercise as at 30 September 2006 ( 1,2) , by Nationality 
			  Nationality  Grants of ILR issued 
			 Serbia and Montenegro 3,905 
			 Sri Lanka 1,945 
			 Turkey 1,735 
			 Pakistan 1,220 
			 Nigeria 1,125 
			 Democratic Republic of Congo 935 
			 Colombia 715 
			 Afghanistan 700 
			 Kenya 685 
			 Ecuador 665 
			 Ghana 595 
			 Somalia 590 
			 Poland 580 
			 China 545 
			 Iran 465 
			 Sierra Leone 405 
			 India 380 
			 Lithuania 380 
			 Uganda 365 
			 Croatia 350 
			 Other 6,055 
			 Grand total 24,340 
			 (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5. (2) Main asylum applicant only.

Leave to Remain

Brian Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the policy review of the practice of giving two months' discretionary leave to remain to any citizen who cannot provide evidence of existing leave to remain at a port of entry will be completed; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: A review of the guidance for dealing with passengers who are unable to provide evidence of their existing leave conditions at port will be completed shortly. The revised guidance will be published on the Home Office website in the new year.

Leave to Remain

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for indefinite leave to remain were submitted in each year between 1997 and 2005; how many are awaiting a decision; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The required statistics in the following table are obtained from the General Case Information Database, which, although operational from late 2001, was not fully utilised until 2002. These figures show the volumes of main applicants applying for non-asylum indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate.
	Of these, approximately 20,000 are awaiting a decision in general casework areas. Information about cases in other business areas could only be obtained by detailed records searches at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			   Number of non-asylum indefinite leave to remain applications from 2001-05( 1) 
			 2002 98,800 
			 2003 103,800 
			 2004 94,800 
			 2005 114,600 
			 (1)Figures given are rounded to the nearest 100  Note: The above data is not provided under the National Statistics protocols. It has been derived from local management information and is therefore provisional and subject to change.

Legal Advice

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent by the Department on external legal advice in each of the past five years.

Liam Byrne: The Home Office maintains records of expenditure on external legal fees which include legal advice. To disaggregate legal advice costs from litigation costs could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Migrant Workers: Bulgaria and Romania

Michael Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what controls he plans to put in place to ensure that building workers coming from Bulgaria and Romania under the highly skilled migrant workers programme have the requisite skills.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 13 December 2006
	The proposed Accession (Immigration and Worker Authorisation) Regulations 2006 provide for Bulgarian and Romanian nationals to be issued with a registration certificate giving access to the labour market if the Secretary of State is satisfied that they are highly skilled. They will be deemed to be highly skilled if they meet the criteria specified for the issuance of a document under the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (http://www.workingintheuk.gov.uk/working_in_the_uk/en/homepage.html) or if they have been awarded qualifications specified in the Regulations.
	Applications for a registration certificate on this basis will need to be accompanied by documentary evidence of qualifications, and in the case of applications that are to be considered against Highly Skilled Migrant programme criteria, other documentary evidence of previous earnings and employment.

Migrant Workers: Bulgaria and Romania

Michael Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what controls will be put in place to ensure that low-skilled workers from Bulgaria and Romania permitted to enter the UK to work in agriculture and food processing are restricted to that type of work.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 13 December 2006
	The proposed Accession (Immigration and Worker Authorisation) Regulations 2006 require Bulgarian and Romanian nationals intending to take employment in the United Kingdom to be in possession of a document confirming that they are authorised to work, except where they are exempt from the requirement to do so.
	In the case of those coming to do agricultural work, this will take the form of a work card issued by an approved operator under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme. In the case of those coming to work in the food processing sector, it will take the form of an accession worker card issued on the basis that the employment has been approved under the criteria of the Sectors-Based Scheme.
	In both cases, the document will specify the employer for whom the worker is authorised to work and will not confer permission to undertake other employment. If the holder engages in employment other than that specified on the document they will commit an offence.

Migrant Workers: Bulgaria and Romania

Michael Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what controls will be put in place to ensure that skilled workers from Bulgaria and Romania entering the UK will be employed only where there are no suitable UK applicants.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 13 December 2006
	The proposed Accession (Immigration and Worker Authorisation) Regulations 2006 require Bulgarian and Romanian nationals intending to take employment in the United Kingdom to be in possession of a document confirming that they are authorised to work, except where they are exempt from the requirement to do so.
	In the majority of cases, the issue of such a document will be conditional upon the employer demonstrating that the employment meets existing work permit criteria. These criteria include requirements that the employer can demonstrate that he has made a genuine attempt to fill the vacancy with a suitably qualified worker from the resident labour market and that the jobholder will be remunerated with the going rate for the job.

National DNA Database

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of offenders convicted in 2005 of  (a) violent offences,  (b) theft and handling of stolen goods,  (c) burglary,  (d) fraud and forgery,  (e) criminal damage and  (f) drugs offences have a profile on the National DNA Database.

John Reid: The National DNA Database records the DNA profile for a particular individual. It does not hold data on arrest and criminal records. This information is held on the Police National Computer (PNC). At present the facilities do not exist on PNC to provide the information requested. However, as standard police practice is to take a DNA sample on arrest, we expect that almost all those convicted of the offences named have a profile on the NDNAD.

National DNA Database

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the prison population has a profile on the National DNA Database.

John Reid: The NDNAD does not record whether people on it are in prison. However, there are good reasons for believing that the great majority of the prison population has a profile on the NDNAD. Forces have had the power to retain DNA taken from those convicted of recordable offences since the establishment of the DNA Database in 1995. For the first few years this power was exercised in relation to more serious offenders, but from 2000 onwards additional funding was made available under the DNA Expansion Programme to make it standard practice to take samples from all offenders. In addition, two prisoner sampling projects have been undertaken, most recently in 2003, to take DNA from any prisoner who had not already been sampled, for example because they had been imprisoned before DNA sampling was widely practiced.

National Offender Management Service

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the detailed business case for the National Offender Management Scheme will be published; and what the differences are between that business case and the strategic business case published on 20 October 2005.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The strategic business case sets out the strategic case for change for NOMS. This is backed up by further documents which have subsequently been published and which were referred to in my written answer to the hon. Member of 4 January, printed on 8 January 2007,  Official Report, column 150W.
	We have developed the strategic business case into a more detailed document for the purposes of managing the change programme. This is in line with best practice guidance from the Office of Government Commerce. The more detailed document, which is constantly updated as the programme develops, is an internal management tool and is not being published at present.

Offenders: Unemployment

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of offenders are unemployed when sentenced.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Home Office does not hold data on the employment status of all sentenced offenders.

Officials: Disclosure

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the proposed EU development of an obligation on certain categories of officials with regard to the reporting of bribery and the disclosure of assets and business interests; and what its legal base is.

Edward Balls: I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 14 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1424W, on the effect of Commission Directives 2005/60/EC and 2006/70/EC.
	The Treaty base for 2005/60/EC is Article 47(2), first and third sentences, and Article 95.

Police

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what projects for minority groups were financially supported by the Metropolitan police in the last two financial years; and what funding is planned in 2006-07.

Tony McNulty: This is a matter for the Metropolitan Police Authority and the Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis.

Police Cells

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police cells are available for use in each police force in England and Wales; and what the average occupancy rate was in police cells in the latest period for which figures are available.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is not held centrally and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost. The provision of police cells is an operational matter for each chief officer.

Prison Service

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the Phoenix computer system for HM Prison Service has been delayed; who is responsible for the implementation of the system; when he expects the system to become operational; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The Phoenix programme has met all key milestones. IT systems and the Shared Service Centre have been implemented to plan.
	During November a processing fault in the procurement application caused it to be temporarily withdrawn. A solution has now been implemented and all sites will have the service reinstated by 22 December.
	Ann Beasley, Director of Finance for the Prison Service, is the senior responsible owner for the Phoenix programme.

Prisoners: Crime Victims

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of prisoners who were at some stage victims of crime.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Home Office does not routinely collect data on whether prisoners have been victims of crime and there has been no research that has specifically addressed this question.

Prisons

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders released from prison were known to have re-offended within  (a) 24 hours,  (b) 48 hours,  (c) one week and  (d) one month of release from prison in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Reid: The most recent re-offending information on times to re-offending was published in November as "Re-offending of Adults: results from the 2003 cohort. Home Office Statistical Bulletin 20/06". The report is available on line at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb2006.pdf and covers offenders starting community sentences or being discharged from prison in England and Wales in the first quarter of 2003.
	Time to re-offending for offenders released from custody only, and information on re-offending within 24 hours, 48 hours, and one week, are not routinely calculated.
	However information on time to re-offending on a monthly basis for offenders released from custody or starting a community sentence in the first quarter of 2003 is illustrated in figure 3, page 5. Figure 4 on page 5 shows the average number of days to re-offending by offence group.

Prisons

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners are serving sentences of  (a) less than three months and  (b) between three and six months.

John Reid: Information on the numbers of prisoners serving sentences of less than six months can be found in the following table which is taken from webtable 8.19 to be published shortly in conjunction with the Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2005, a copy of which can be found in the House of Commons Library.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system, and although shown to the last individual the figures may not be accurate to that level.
	
		
			  Population in prison establishments serving immediate custodial sentences up to six months, as at 30 June 2005 
			   Number 
			 Up to and including three months 1,882 
			 Over three months and including six months 4,127

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the number of prisoners who have accommodation arranged on release from prison.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Data for the resettlement key performance indicator show that, in 2005-06, 76,774 prisoners reported that they had accommodation arranged on release. This represents 90.1 per cent. of the total released in the year ending March 2006, the latest period for which figures are available.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are in place for the provision of advice on  (a) benefits and  (b) debt to prisoners on release.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Jobcentre Plus advisers work in most prisons, and offer advice and assistance on potential employment opportunities, closing down benefit claims and the completion of forms, including for community care grants or crisis loans, prior to discharge.
	Prisoners who do not have a job or training place to go to on release also have the opportunity to have a Freshstart interview booked prior to release to enable them to attend a local Jobcentre within the first few days of discharge.
	This provides them with opportunity to seek employment and links them into the benefit system.
	Debt advice is provided across the prison estate through local management arrangements by a variety of voluntary and statutory organisations.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average number of hours of purposeful activity was undertaken by a prisoner per week in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available; and for what reason this figure is no longer published by the Prison Service or Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The average number of weekly hours of purposeful activity per prisoner during the last 10 years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Purposeful activity outturns since 1996-97 
			  Financial year  Percentage 
			 1996-97 23.8 
			 1997-98 23.3 
			 1998-99 22.8 
			 1999-2000 23.2 
			 2000-01 23.8 
			 2001-02 23.4 
			 2002-03 22.6 
			 2003-04 23.1 
			 2004-05 24.4 
			 2005-06 25.2 
		
	
	Purposeful Activity ceased to be a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in 2003-04 but remains an establishment-level Key Performance Target (KPT). Ministers agreed that outcome-based KPIs introduced in respect of education, rehabilitation and resettlement provide a better demonstration of the efforts to equip prisoners to be less likely to offend on release. Establishments are set annual targets for prisoner activity and performance continues to be monitored internally.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average number of hours a prisoner spent outside his or her cell per day in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The average number of hours of time out of cell for each prisoner during the last 10 years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Time out of cell outturns since 1996-97 
			   Average time out of cell per prisoner per weekday 
			 1996-97 11.2 
			 1997-98 10.9 
			 1998-99 10.6 
			 1999-2000 10.2 
			 2000-01 9.6 
			 2001-02 9.6 
			 2002-03 9.8 
			 2003-04 9.9 
			 2004-05 10.0 
			 2005-06 10.0

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what most recent estimate he has made of the number of prisoners who have taken illegal drugs while in prison.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The best measure of drug misuse in prisons is provided by the random mandatory drug testing programme. The positive rate for 2005-06—the latest period for which data are available—was 10.3 per cent.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the degree to which drug treatment is standardised across British prisons; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: A wide range of standards, good practice guidance and performance measures define the delivery of drug treatment across Prisons in England and Wales. Prisons may vary the framework for delivery in order to best match local need.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of female prisoners are mothers.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This information is not kept routinely by the Prison Service. A resettlement survey commissioned in 2003-04 by the then Custody to Work Unit, Prison Service, showed that half of all female prisoners had dependent children (including stepchildren) under 18, and 46 per cent. of those women had lived with at least one dependent child before custody.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of prisoners have a child under 18 years of age.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information on the family responsibilities of prisoners is not collated centrally.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what his most recent estimate is of the number of prisoners who stay in touch with their families during their sentence;
	(2)  what his most recent estimate is of the impact of family contact during imprisonment on an offender's resettlement after release.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information on the number of prisoners having contact with their families or the impact such contact has on resettlement outcomes is not collated centrally.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison visits  (a) in total and  (b) on average prisoners received in each year since 1997.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Prisoners have a statutory entitlement to social visits and are also able to earn additional visits under the Incentives and Earned Privileges Scheme, Statistics on the number of visits to prisoners are not centrally collated, as there is currently no universal way of recording such data.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department at what average distance from their homes  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners are held; and how many prisoners are held over 100 miles away from their home.

Gerry Sutcliffe: As at 29 September 2006, the average distance from home for male prisoners was 50 miles, and for women prisoners the average distance from home was 58 miles.
	Around 10,700 prisoners are located over 100 miles from home.
	Distance from home is calculated using either home address, which is held for approximately 45 per cent. of prisoners, or where no home address is listed the committal court used a proxy.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provisions are in place for searching  (a) visitors and  (b) others entering prisons; and to what extent this is standardised across prisons.

Gerry Sutcliffe: As a condition of entry, visitors and all other persons entering a prison will be searched in accordance with the prison's local searching strategy, which must be compliant with the Prison Service National Security Framework (NSF).
	The NSF provides that domestic, official and professional visitors and staff are subject to a rub down search, a metal detector/portal scan and a passive drug dog search on entry. The level and frequency of such searches must be agreed between the Governor and Area Manager of each establishment, based on local needs and requirements. In exceptional circumstances, visitors may be subject to a full search.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which prisons make use of body orifice scanning machines to search people entering prisons; and what the cost of one machine is.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Prison Service is currently trialling a body orifice scanner in one high security prison. The trial involves detecting contraband held by prisoners and is not currently applied to staff or visitors entering prisons.
	It is not possible to provide a costing for the machine as the cost is confidential within the contract.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the means by which illegal substances are most commonly brought into prisons.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Home Office commissioned a substantial piece of research that identified patterns of drug use and supply routes. The six main routes identified were social visits, mail, new receptions, prison staff, over the perimeter wall and reception after court visits.
	A comprehensive range of measures is in place to target these routes.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate he has made of the number of prisoners suffering from mental health problems; and how many prisons have mental health in-reach teams.

Gerry Sutcliffe: A survey, "Psychiatric morbidity among prisoners in England and Wales" (Office for National Statistics, 1998) showed that 90 per cent. of prisoners have at least one significant mental health problem, including personality disorder, psychosis, neurosis, alcohol misuse and drug dependence. A copy is available in the Library.
	Mental health services for prisoners have been a key part of the Government's recent reforms of health services for prisoners. The Department of Health is now investing nearly £20 million a year in NHS mental health in-reach services for prisoners. These are community mental health teams working within prisons and are now available in 102 prisons, with some 360 extra staff employed. Every prison in England and Wales has access to these services.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of waiting times between assessment of a prisoner and a transfer to hospital.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Prisoners with severe mental health problems should be transferred and treated in hospital whenever possible. To help facilitate quicker transfers, a protocol has been issued setting out what must be done when a prisoner has been waiting for a hospital place for more than three months following acceptance by the NHS. Tighter monitoring has also been introduced to identify prisoners waiting an unacceptably long period for transfer.
	In 2005, 24 per cent. more prisoners with mental illness too severe for prison were transferred to hospital than in 2002—up to 896 from 722. In the quarter ending September 2006, 43 prisoners had been waiting over 12 weeks for a transfer, down from 58 in the same quarter in 2005.
	We are looking to further reduce the national waiting time standard for transfers between custodial settings and hospitals. Pilots of a 14-day maximum wait will take place in 15 mental health trusts next year.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the incidence of self-harm among  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Based on information compiled from incidents recorded on the Prison Service Incident Reporting System, the total number of recorded self-harm incidents in 2005 was approximately 21,600, with 9,100 involving male prisoners and 12,500 involving female prisoners. Many of these incidents involve the same individuals.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the average cost per year of keeping an offender in  (a) an adult prison,  (b) a young offender institution and  (c) a secure training centre, broken down by main budget heading.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The cost per place in each type of prison establishment for 2005-06 is shown separately for the public and contracted sectors in the tables.
	The Prison Service does not routinely collate cost-per-place data by specific elements of expenditure.
	
		
			  Table 113641 A: public sector prison costs by function 
			  Function name  Cost per prison place (£) 
			 Male category B 25,881 
			 Male category C 21,976 
			 Male dispersal 43,904 
			 Female closed 34,617 
			 Female local 37,366 
			 Female open 23,932 
			 Male closed YOI 32,887 
			 Male juvenile 42,143 
			 Male local 31,912 
			 Male open 120,183 
			 Male open YOI 27,413 
			 Semi open 23,571 
			 Prison totals 28,486 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 113641 B: contracted sector prison costs by function 
			  Function name  Cost per prison place (£) 
			 Male category B 26,813 
			 Male category C 20,855 
			 Female closed 44,400 
			 Male juvenile 48,669 
			 Male local 33,805 
			 Prison totals 33,722 
		
	
	In 2005-06, the cost of the four secure training centres (STCs), commissioned from the private sector by the Youth Justice Board was £47.2 million, for 274 places. This represents a cost-per-place figure of £172,300.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were housed  (a) with one other person in a cell designated for one and  (b) with two other persons in a cell designated for two, in each of the last 10 years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The following table shows the average number of prisoners held two to a cell certified for one, for each of the last 10 years, and the number of prisoners held three to a cell certified for two, for each of the last three years. Three to a cell information is not available from before April 2003.
	
		
			  Doubling and three to cell information since 1996-97 
			   Average monthly: 
			  Financial year  Doubling( 1)  Three to a cell( 1) 
			 1996-97 9,498 n/a 
			 1997-98 11,548 n/a 
			 1998-99 12,024 n/a 
			 1999-2000 12,221 n/a 
			 2000-01 11,128 n/a 
			 2001-02 11,449 n/a 
			 2002-03 14,588 n/a 
			 2003-04 16,363 1,270 
			 2004-05 16,878 1,048 
			 2005-06 16,986 1,133 
			 n/a = not available. (1) Figures subject to rounding.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison places were  (a) put out of use and  (b) created in each year since 1997; and at which prisons those changes took place.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many suicides there were in prisons classified as overcrowded in each of the last 10 years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Self-inflicted deaths in crowded prisons 
			   Number 
			 1996 29 
			 1997 38 
			 1998 67 
			 1999 63 
			 2000 61 
			 2001 50 
			 2002 72 
			 2003 82 
			 2004 76 
			 2005 69 
			  Notes: 1. A crowded prison is defined as one in which the prison population is more than the certified normal accommodation. 2. Self-inflicted deaths includes all deaths where it appears the individual acted specifically to take their own life, not only those that received a suicide or open verdict at inquest

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to ensure that education managers in prisons receive prisoners' records following transfer from another prison; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Secure arrangements are in place to transfer individual learning plans and records of prisoners' achievements and aspirations as they move between prisons and from prison to the community. Further work is under way between the Learning and Skills Council and the National Offender Management Service to develop and introduce a comprehensive electronic system.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the two prisons he announced for reroling in October 2006 are additional to the reroling of Brockhill and Bullwood Hall already announced by his Department in the spring.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The two prisons referred to in the Home Secretary's statement of 9 October 2006 were the two women's prisons, Brockhill and Bullwood Hall.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of prisoners identified as having drug problems are undergoing intensive drug rehabilitation.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Based on the number of prisoners engaging in 2005-06 with the counselling, assessment, referral, advice and throughcare (CARAT) treatment service, 16 per cent. went on to engage with an intensive drug treatment programme. This figure excludes juvenile prisons.
	Not all prisoners with a drug dependency require an intensive treatment programme or are in prison long enough to gain access.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of the Prison Service budget was spent on education in 2005-06.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Prison Service spent £85.2 million on education in 2005-06. This represents 4.5 per cent. of the gross budget. The Prison Service fully recovered this expenditure by invoicing DfES, which holds the budget for prisoners' education.
	The net cost to the Prison Service was nil.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent assessment is of the proportion of prisoners who are able to complete a job application form.

Gerry Sutcliffe: We do not collect this specific information. However, Department for Education and Skills statistics show that 82 per cent. of offenders have writing skills at or below those expected of an 11-year-old. For reading and numeracy the figures are 48 per cent. and 65 per cent. respectively.
	As part of wider work to get prisoners into employment, assistance with completing job application forms is provided to prisoners including by Jobcentre Plus staff, prison officers, voluntary sector workers and peer advisers.

Probation Service

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the evidential basis is for the proposals for reform of the probation service;
	(2)  what the evidential basis is for his statement that the Offender Management Bill will drive up standards.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Offender Management Bill will enable the Secretary of State to commission probation services from providers in the voluntary, charitable and private sectors, to work alongside the public sector in the delivery of probation services. Experience in the custodial sector has shown that the introduction of alternative providers has helped to raise performance: there have been efficiency savings of up to 8.5 per cent. and improved standards of decency and innovation in staffing structures and prison design. The public sector has also raised its game in response. We expect to see similar effects in probation.

Probation: Alcohol Misuse

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made on the availability of treatment for alcohol misusers on probation.

Gerry Sutcliffe: In May the National Probation Directorate (NPD) published "Working with Alcohol Misusing Offenders—a strategy for delivery". The strategy, which complements the Prison Service Alcohol Strategy to create a coherent NOMS Alcohol Strategy, contains a number of actions for NPD and recommendations for probation areas to improve provision, many of which are being taken forward in 2006-07.

Proceeds of Crime Act

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the value has been of items collected under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 in each police authority in each of the last three years.

Vernon Coaker: Information is not available in the form requested. A confiscation order is made by the court for a sum of money to be paid by the defendant. It need not be paid from any particular assets or items. The value of confiscation orders and cash forfeiture orders obtained by each police force in England and Wales in each of the last three years under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and earlier legislation is set out in the Table.
	
		
			  Total value of confiscation orders and cash forfeiture orders obtained by police Forces in England And Wales( 1) 
			  £ 
			  Force  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 Avon and Somerset Constabulary 594,347 1,959,930 1,522,574 
			 Bedfordshire Police 3,392,094 154,828 272,110 
			 Cambridgeshire Constabulary 278,679 2,695,434 21 1 ,225 
			 Cheshire Constabulary 250,263 541,557 828,304 
			 City of London Police 1,200,282 2,211,123 1,535,450 
			 Cleveland Police 19,140 230,220 914,060 
			 Cumbria Constabulary 120,917 1,124,156 368,023 
			 Derbyshire Constabulary 71,140 2,540,453 330,629 
			 Devon and Cornwall Constabulary 192,616 1,182,881 880,765 
			 Dorset Police 147,532 1,050,401 973,179 
			 Durham Constabulary 235,600 477,399 1,010,122 
			 Dyfed-Powys Police 121,750 201,061 459,740 
			 Essex Police 0 192,804 652,297 
			 Gloucestershire Constabulary 930,442 390,469 370,472 
			 Greater Manchester Police 2,798,966 3,453,431 5,310,908 
			 Gwent Police 52,140 442,673 489,843 
			 Hampshire Constabulary 298,447 333,792 860,511 
			 Hertfordshire Constabulary 929,368 440,353 568,276 
			 Humberside Police 826,661 255,656 263,562 
			 Kent Police 1,210,503 1,926,936 1,276,675 
			 Lancashire Constabulary 120,953 3,743,146 4,621,451 
			 Leicestershire Constabulary 1,087,417 891,588 1,121,491 
			 Lincolnshire Police 143,411 307,912 1,498,169 
			 Merseyside Police 1,217,852 2,908,71 1 3,358,387 
			 Metropolitan Police Service 5,950,410 26,426,648 35,028,509 
			 Norfolk Constabulary 89,325 911,868 3,574,093 
			 North Wales Police 89,522 109,758 1,025,456 
			 North Yorkshire Police 0 205,081 413,504 
			 Northamptonshire Police 556,066 1,063,417 748,569 
			 Northumbria Police 691,770 909,645 756,663 
			 Nottinghamshire Police 875,434 1,336,612 477,136 
			 South Wales Police 75,637 400,577 5,167,828 
			 South Yorkshire Police 784,579 1,330,077 1,292,706 
			 Staffordshire Police 373,784 260,405 1,164,691 
			 Suffolk Constabulary 137,649 430,715 666,872 
			 Surrey Police 1,480,550 648,947 790,279 
			 Sussex Police 652,221 1,002,181 2,281,707 
			 Thames Valley Police 1,182,132 750,663 2,264,483 
			 Warwickshire Police 83,116 57,357 254,391 
			 West Mercia Constabulary 1,180,461 999, 467 1 ,304,937 
			 West Midlands Police 819,117 2,053,433 3,568,894 
			 West Yorkshire Police 2,874,164 2,265,457 4,438,068 
			 Wiltshire Constabulary 39,848 482,559 233,976 
			 (1) Includes cases involving regional asset recovery teams and assets recovery agency.

Prostitution

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to introduce legislation to implement the commitment in the Government prostitution strategy to exclude premises shared by two women from the definition of a brothel.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Following publication of the Government's strategy on prostitution, which included our proposal to amend the definition of a brothel, it is clear that further consultation is required to ensure this change meets our objective of improving the safety of those involved in off-street prostitution, without inadvertently causing difficulties either for those involved or their neighbours. We will make an announcement in due course.

Prostitution

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to engage other Government departments with the prostitution strategy; and how this work is co-ordinated.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Home Office co-ordinates the implementation of the strategy through bilateral meetings at official level, overseen by the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Sexual Offending. The following Government Departments are represented on the Ministerial Group:
	Department for Education and Skills
	Department of Health
	Department for Constitutional Affairs
	Department for Communities and Local Government
	Attorney General's Office
	Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Prostitution

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in implementing the Government's strategy on reducing street prostitution.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Implementation of the strategy is well under way. At its heart is the need to tackle the issue at a local level and reduce the number of women tied to the streets by addressing the reasons for their involvement.
	So far as the latter is concerned, the Government have invested £600 million in drug treatment provisions, with over 140,000 people successfully completing drug treatment programmes. We also plan to introduce a new penalty requiring women to engage with services to deal with the issues behind their involvement in prostitution, including drug addiction and homelessness. In addition to this, the Sexual Violence Action Plan, due to be published in the new year, has a number of specific measures aimed at addressing sexual violence against people involved in prostitution.
	The strategy provides a framework for local areas to develop their own co-ordinated response to the problems associated with prostitution in their areas. We continue to work with local partnerships and individual agencies, including the police, to ensure that a prostitution strategy is developed in every area where there is a problem to be addressed.

Recalled Prisoners

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders were recalled to prison for breach of the conditions of their release in each of the last 10 years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information on the numbers of recalls of prisoners released on licence from prison establishments in England and Wales can be found in tables 10.7, 10.8 and 10.9 in the Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2005. This publication has recently been published and a copy is available in the House of Commons Library; it can also be accessed over the web at the website:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb1806.pdf
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system, and although shown to the last individual, the figures may not be accurate to that level.

Re-offending

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the cost of re-offending to England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This information is not routinely collected and producing estimates would require disproportionate cost. There are some readily available sources that provide some indications of the nature of re-offending.
	Information on the estimated costs of offences against individuals and households for 2003-04 and 2000 are published in Home Office Online Report 30/05, "The economic and social costs of crime against individuals and households 2003-04".

Sentencing

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average sentence was for  (a) assault and  (b) assault with a minor injury on a police officer in each year since 2002.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information is contained in the table.
	
		
			  Average custodial sentence length and proportion of persons given immediate custody for offences( 1)  of common assault and assault on a police constable, England and Wales 
			   Common assault  Assault on a police constable( 2) 
			   Percentage given custody  Average custodial sentence length (months)  Percentage given custody  Average custodial sentence length (months) 
			 2002 10.7 2.9 19.6 2.9 
			 2003 10.1 3.0 18.4 2.8 
			 2004 11.3 3.1 19.1 2.9 
			 2005 11.2 3.1 19.7 2.9 
			 (1) Principal offence basis. (2) Excludes offences of resisting or obstructing a police constable in execution of duty.  Note: Although care is taken in collating and analysing the returns used to compile these figures, the data are of necessity subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system. Consequently, although figures are shown to the last digit in order to provide a comprehensive record of the information collected, they are not necessarily accurate to the last digit shown.  Source: RDS-NOMS, Home Office.

Thames Valley Police

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what expenditure by the Thames Valley Police was under the headings of  (a) non-incident linked paperwork,  (b) checking paperwork (supervisory),  (c) robberies,  (d) house burglaries and  (e) violent crime identified by the recent Activity- Based Costing Review for 2004-05.

Tony McNulty: The information supplied to the Home Office for the 2004-05 Activity-Based Costing review did not include cost data for non-incident linked paperwork and checking paperwork.
	The other information requested is as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 Robberies 10.1 
			 House burglaries (domestic violence) 18.3 
			 Violent crime (all violence) 23.1 
			  Note: Figures taken from Thames Valley ABC return for 2004-05.

Work Permits and Visas

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have made representations about their stay rights, having been granted a valid work permit since the change of system from unified work permit and stay visa application to separate applications for each; how his officials are dealing with such inquiries; if he will instruct his officials to take account of potential confusions following the change of system when permission to stay is being considered; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The Department does not keep a record of the number of applicants who have made representations on their further leave to remain applications since the unified process was separated in April 2004. The regulations regarding the change to a two-stage application process (work permit and then leave to remain application) were laid before Parliament on 10 March 2004. Information was also published on the Home Office's website (www.workingintheuk.gov.uk) on 15 March along with the new application forms.
	All representations are considered under the published Immigration Rules and internal guidance instructions, which caseworkers follow when considering all applications. Guidance on the change to a two-stage process was issued to caseworkers in March 2004.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Apprenticeships

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many apprentices left their course during each quarter of the past three years; and what steps he is taking to reduce the drop-out rate.

Bill Rammell: Figures for those participating in apprenticeships funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) can be derived from the Individualised Learner Record (ILR). The work-based learning (WBL) ILR was collated as an interim collection for the first time in 2001/02 and figures are presented from that time.
	The following table shows the success rate for apprenticeship courses on an annual basis (quarterly figures are not available). Drop-out rates do not exist for apprenticeships; the closest metric is the success rate which refers to the proportion of those who complete apprenticeships in each academic year who achieve the full apprenticeship framework in England. We are making good progress towards meeting a new performance indicator that by 2008 the numbers completing apprenticeships will have risen by three quarters (over 2002/03).
	
		
			  Apprenticeship success rate, England 
			   Percentage 
			 2001/02 24 
			 2002/03 27 
			 2003/04 31 
			 2004/05 40 
		
	
	The Learning and Skills Council is working to assess provider performance against minimum levels of performance, expanding excellent provision, demanding improved success rates or looking to re-tender provision where appropriate to meet the needs and protect the interests of learners and employers.

Apprenticeships

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many modern apprenticeships have been undertaken in  (a) Leeds, West and  (b) Leeds in each of the last five years.

Bill Rammell: Figures for those participating in apprenticeships funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) can be derived from the Individualised Learner Record (ILR). Figures for Leeds are available from 2002/03 onwards.
	The following table shows the average number of apprentices in learning in Leeds based on the home postcode of the learner:
	
		
			  Leeds  Apprentices 
			 2002/03 2,790 
			 2003/04 3,040 
			 2004/05 3,010 
			 2005/06 2,990 
			  Note: Figures rounded to nearest 10.

Bonus Payments

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what criteria a civil servant in his Department must fulfil  (a) to be considered for a bonus on top of their regular salary and  (b) to be awarded a bonus.

Parmjit Dhanda: At the end of the reporting year, the Line Manger will draw together evidence of performance with the Job Holder. They will then agree a Performance Category marking, based on set criteria, which will be used to inform the decision whether or not the Job Holder will qualify for a bonus in addition to their salary. Detailed guidance is issued to Line Managers and Job Holders to support this process.

Child Care

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of child care  (a) places and  (b) providers have closed in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Beverley Hughes: The available information is shown in the tables.
	
		
			  Table 1: Closure rate for child care providers and places 
			   2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  March to September 2006 
			   Provider closure rate  Places closure rate  Provider closure rate  Places closure rate  Provider closure rate  Places closure rate  Provider closure rate  Places closure rate 
			 Childminders 16.7 15.8 21.8 19.9 14.3 13.9 8.6 8.2 
			 Full day care 9.7 8.4 14.5 12.7 9.7 8.6 5.3 4.8 
			 Out of school 13.0 12.1 22.6 21.2 14.1 13.9 9.2 8.7 
			 All 15.5 11.6 20.9 17.1 13.7 11.5 8.2 6.8 
			  Source:  Ofsted 
		
	
	Ofsted data on closures include registered places in settings which are transferring ownership, and in settings which move from one Ofsted category to another, not just in those which are ceasing trading. For example, if a sessional provider moved to offering full day care provision, this would be recorded as a 'closed' sessional setting and an 'opened' full day care setting. The Ofsted data therefore exaggerate the true extent of turnover in terms of both the number of places and the number of providers.
	Prior to April 2003 the method of collecting data from local authorities did not enable the calculation of a figure for the stock of child care providers or places. Therefore it is not possible to provide a percentage figure for the closures of providers or places for the periods 2001-02 and 2002-03.
	Closure rates should be seen in the context of opening rates for the corresponding periods and are shown in Table 2.
	
		
			  Table 2: Opening rate for child care providers and places 
			   2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  March to September 2006 
			   Provider opening rate  Places opening rate  Provider opening rate  Places opening rate  Provider opening rate  Places opening rate  Provider opening rate  Places opening rate 
			 Childminders 22.5 21.6 18.6 18.8 16.7 15.8 8.1 7.6 
			 Full day care 22.6 24.8 23.3 24.6 17.5 17.0 8.8 8.0 
			 Out of school 25.9 24.7 27.3 25.4 21.8 20.9 10.9 10.1 
			 All 22.9 23.9 20.2 23.3 17.4 17.8 8.5 8.5 
			  Source:  Ofsted 
		
	
	Ofsted have produced figures on the numbers of registered child care providers and places on a quarterly basis from March 2003. Their latest figures were published in their report, "Registered Childcare Providers and Places, September 2006", which is available on their website,
	www.Ofsted.gov.uk/.

Children in Care

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the merits of the provision of support for children in care through  (a) peer support and  (b) mentors; and what steps he is taking to promote these forms of support.

Parmjit Dhanda: Mentoring for children in care features in a number of local authority programmes and voluntary sector initiatives and there is anecdotal evidence of its potential benefits. In recognition of this the Department is providing up to £1.5 million for the development and evaluation of an adult mentoring programme for 600 looked-after children aged between 10 and 15, to be delivered through the voluntary and community sector. In addition, peer mentoring is a feature of a three-year DfES-funded pilot project led by the School Home Support Service UK, which is designed to support children in care who are making the transition from primary to secondary school.

Educational Maintenance Allowance

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the costs of the Educational Maintenance Allowance were in the most recent period for which figures are available; and what estimate he has made of the cost of extending the allowance to all A-level students.

Bill Rammell: During the 2005/06 academic year the total Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) expenditure was £443.5 million, of which £396.8 million was specifically spent on student payments.
	The estimated total cost of EMA if it was extended to all young people in full-time further education, based on the 2005/06 full-time education participation figures, which include A Level students, is £1,057 million.
	From April 2006 EMA was extended to young people on LSC-funded programme-led apprenticeships and entry-to-employment programmes. Therefore in addition to the costs for those in full-time further education, there would be additional costs for students participating on those work-based learning programmes.

Foreign Postgraduate Students

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what correspondence his Department has with the Home Office to determine whether students from countries of weapons of mass destruction proliferation concern could use their studies in the UK for unfriendly purposes; how many projects of the students referred to in the answer of 13 March 2006,  Official Report, column 1870W, on foreign postgraduate students, are being supported from UK public funds; and if he will ask the relevant funding body to place in the Library the synopses sent to it as part of the awards process.

Bill Rammell: The Department has not been in correspondence with the Home Office on this matter but DfES officials have attended meetings convened by the Cabinet Office about the student vetting scheme, at which Home Office officials have also been present. International postgraduate students are not eligible to receive student grants or loans, but there are a number of Government scholarships schemes which are available to talented students from around the world.
	The largest of these is the Chevening scholarship scheme administered by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In 2004/05 there were seven students from China in receipt of Chevening awards studying biology, chemistry, physics or chemical process and energy engineering. No other students from the six countries referred to in the answer of 13 March 2006,  Official Report, column 1870W were studying these subjects and in receipt of a Chevening award. Details of recipients of awards from smaller schemes run by other Government Departments and funding bodies are not collected centrally. It is not possible to provide details of individual projects.

Further Education and Training Bill

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will meet with the Leader of the House to discuss the pre-legislative scrutiny of the provisions of the Further Education and Training Bill (Lords) as they relate to Wales;
	(2)  if he will meet the Chairman of the Welsh Affairs Committee, my hon. Friend the Member for Aberavon (Dr. Francis), to discuss the pre-legislative scrutiny of the Welsh aspects of the Further Education and Training Bill (Lords).

Bill Rammell: The Bill has already received its Second Reading in the House of Lords on 13 December 2006. Members of both Houses will be able to scrutinise and suggest amendments to the Bill during its remaining parliamentary passage, including in relation to the provisions for Wales.

Higher Education: Sunderland

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students participated in higher education in each year since 1997 in the Sunderland City Council area.

Bill Rammell: The latest available figures are shown in the table. The figures for 2005/06 will be available in January 2007.
	
		
			  Total number of enrolments on Higher Education courses at the University of Sunderland and the City of Sunderland College, 1997/98 to 2004/05 
			  Academic year  Total enrolments 
			 1997/98 14,750 
			 1998/99 14,045 
			 1999/2000 12,990 
			 2000/01 12,510 
			 2001/02 12,505 
			 2002/03 14,370 
			 2003/04 16,165 
			 2004/05 16,320 
			  Notes:  The figures for total enrolments are derived by summation of figures derived from data collected by HESA and LSC. They have been rounded to the nearest 5 enrolments. The figures for the years up to 2000/01 are not directly comparable with the figures for the years from 2001/02. The figures derived from data from HESA are on a snapshot basis as at 1 December each year and exclude writing up, sabbatical and dormant modes of study. The figures derived from data from LSC are on a snapshot basis as at 1 November each year up to 2000/01. They are on a whole year count basis from 2001/02. The figures do not include enrolments on higher education courses at the Open University of people in the Sunderland City Council area.  Source:  The figures for the University of Sunderland were derived from data collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). The figures for the City of Sunderland College were derived from data collected by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC).

Inter-country Adoptions

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average time taken to process inter-country adoptions was in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: There is no centrally held information on the average length of time it takes to complete an inter-country adoption, which covers the time of the initial approach of the prospective adopters to an adoption agency until the point of legal recognition of the adoption in the UK.
	The length of time taken to effect an inter-country adoption is dependent on the complexity of the individual case. A range of bodies is involved in the process, including foreign authorities, adoption agencies, and embassies. The process of identifying a prospective 'match' between would-be adopters and a foreign child is usually the lengthiest element of the process, which takes a period of several months but can take more than a year.

Learning and Skills Council

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the likely numbers of redundancies at the Learning and Skills Council in Coventry; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 8 January 2007
	The Learning and Skills Council has carried out a radical restructuring exercise which will ensure that it becomes even more effective at identifying and responding to learning and skill needs. The new structure will include around 150 new local partnership teams, which will work with key local stakeholders to secure a wide choice of high-quality provision which reflects what individuals, employers and wider communities want and helps to deliver our long term economic success. They will work alongside a number of specialist Economic Development teams, and will be supported by nine new regional centres that will provide core operational services and co-ordinate the LSC's work with regional partners.
	The new structure is expected to require 1,100 fewer posts across the whole organisation. The LSC continues to do all it can to avoid making compulsory redundancies, and estimates that nationally these changes will save up to £40 million per year, which can be directed to front line services.

Nurseries and Child Care

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the maximum time is that may elapse before  (a) nurseries and  (b) other childcare settings must be inspected by OFSTED following the registration of those settings; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Currently Ofsted visits child care providers before registration and inspects them within seven months of joining the register, and then at least once within the next three years. Through the Childcare Act 2006 we are reforming the inspection and regulation of child care and from September 2008 Ofsted will operate two registers: The Early Years Register (EYR), for children up to five; and the Ofsted Childcare Register (OCR), for school-aged children and for child care for younger children not required to be registered. The OCR will be compulsory for providers of child care to children aged five to seven and voluntary for other child care. Regular inspections will continue after 2008 for providers, including nurseries, registered on the EYR. Inspection of child care registered on the OCR will be carried out proportionately on the basis of risks to children. Ofsted will at any time be able to request evidence that registered providers are meeting the OCR requirements, and will carry out the majority of inspections on a random basis.

Nursery Education

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations he has received on a regulatory impact assessment of the implementation of the 2006 Code of Practice for Nursery Education Provision.

Beverley Hughes: In late 2006, the Department and the Cabinet Office Better Regulation Executive (BRE) received several requests for copies of regulatory impact assessments carried out on the 2006 "Code of Practice on the Provision of Free Nursery Education Places for 3 and 4 Year-Olds."
	The single substantive change to the delivery of the free early education entitlement, set out in the 2006 Code of Practice, was the extension of the minimum free entitlement from 33 to 38 weeks. Following full public consultation, we made clear our recognition that not all providers would be able to extend their provision to 38 weeks and that, at the relevant local authority's discretion, they could be funded for the provision they actually delivered. Furthermore, all local authorities received additional funding to support the extension to the free entitlement. We therefore concluded that there should not be a substantive regulatory impact and that a regulatory impact assessment was not required.

Nursery Education

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what recent representations he has received on free at-the-point-of-delivery nursery provision in England;
	(2)  what representations he has received on the effect of the implementation of the 2006 DFES Code of Practice for Nursery Education Provision.

Beverley Hughes: Child care provision, free at the point of delivery, has been a universal entitlement for all four-year-olds since 1998 and for all three-year-olds since 2004. It is widely supported by parents, providers, local authorities and other stakeholders.
	My colleagues and I regularly meet representatives of a range of stakeholders with an interest in the free entitlement and other child care issues. These meetings have been opportunities to celebrate the progress that we are making together towards the delivery of our Ten-Year Childcare Strategy commitments and to discuss issues of implementation including those relating to the 2006 code of practice.
	Since the code of practice came into force in April 2006, Ministers and officials have received a range of correspondence from a variety of stakeholders. Correspondents routinely acknowledge the benefits of the free entitlement for children, and demonstrate commitment to its delivery. A number of correspondents have raised issues relating to the arrangements for increasing the free entitlement from 33 to 38 weeks and to 15 hours per week by 2010, and a number have expressed views about the Government's position on providers charging parents for elements of their free provision.
	In responding, I have been clear that the Government provide sufficient funding to local authorities for the delivery of a universal free early learning entitlement that benefits all children regardless of their parents' income or ability to pay. Local authorities have discretion over the use they make of funding from the Dedicated Schools Grant including the rates at which they fund early education in all types of setting. They are encouraged to fund early years provision equitably across settings in accordance with local circumstances. It has always been unacceptable for providers to charge so-called "top-up fees" for the free entitlement, in addition to the money they receive from local authorities for delivering the free entitlement.
	We conducted a full public consultation on the 2006 code of practice, to which 585 responses were received, the majority from private providers. Most respondents were content with the extension of the free entitlement to 38 weeks in all sectors. None of those who responded questioned the requirement to ensure that the entitlement is entirely free at the point of delivery.

Office for Disability Issues

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many times the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Skills, the hon. Member for Gloucester (Mr Dhanda) has attended meetings of the Office for Disability Issues since its establishment.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 13 December 2006
	I am responding on behalf of Lord Adonis, who leads on this area. There have been no meetings at ministerial level. However, officials within my Department have actively engaged with the ODI in a number of areas relating to furthering equality for disabled people, including on preparation of the Department's recently published Disability Equality Scheme and on the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit (PMSU) programme, 'Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People'. In addition, the head of the ODI has addressed a meeting of the DfES board and directors, chaired by the permanent secretary. Furthermore, two of my senior officials are members of the ODI board of management, which is jointly responsible for co-ordinating the strategy and steering the work of the ODI, in line with the 20-year vision for disabled people.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many written Parliamentary Questions to his Department in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before Prorogation, or with similar wording;
	(2)  how many written parliamentary questions to his Department in the 2005-06 session were not answered wholly or in part on grounds of disproportionate cost;
	(3)  how many written parliamentary questions to his Department in the 2005-06 session did not receive an answer.

Parmjit Dhanda: This Department issued 23 Prorogation replies before the House prorogued on 8 November. Eleven of these parliamentary questions were tabled on 6 November and it was not possible to respond within the timescale. Six have since been re-tabled and all have had a substantive reply.
	The Department's PQ Tracking System is however unable to break down the other data requested and to do so would incur disproportionate cost. This Department aims to ensure that Members receive a substantive response to their named day question on the named day, and endeavours to answer ordinary written questions within a working week of their being tabled.

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on the retirement age, what his Department's policy is on the application of the national default retirement age to staff below the Senior Civil Service.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department has no maximum retirement age for staff below the Senior Civil Service, so members of staff do not have to retire when they reach the national default retirement age of 65 or any prescribed time thereafter.

Student Finance

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many UK-domiciled initial participants in higher education have not applied to the Student Loans Company for any financial support in the academic year 2006-07 to date.

Bill Rammell: Data are not available on the number of initial participants in higher education in academic year 2006/07 who have not applied to the Student Loans Company for any financial support.
	Figures for English domiciled students for 2005/06, which have been derived from the latest available data, show that 898,000 higher education students were eligible for a maintenance loan from the Student Loans Company. 801,000 of these students applied for a maintenance loan. By subtraction, 97,000 students did not apply for a maintenance loan.
	Figures for initial participants and those eligible for financial support other than maintenance loans cannot be derived from the available data.

UK Youth Parliament

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which Government Ministers have attended meetings of the UK Youth Parliament since January 2005.

Parmjit Dhanda: The following Ministers have attended meetings of the UK Youth Parliament since January 2005:
	
		
			  Minister  Date 
			 Margaret Hodge 17 March 2005 
			 Alan Johnson 24 July 2006 
			 Parmjit Dhanda 13 December 2006

University Drop-out Rates

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the official drop-out rate is for  (a) the University of East Anglia and  (b) Cambridge University in the last five years, broken down by department or faculty.

Bill Rammell: The latest available non-completion rates for the Universities of Cambridge and East Anglia are shown in Table 1.
	
		
			  Table 1: Proportion of entrants to full-time first degree courses who are projected to neither obtain an award nor transfer 
			  Percentage 
			   1999/2000  2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04 
			 University of Cambridge 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.0 1.8 
			  Against benchmark( 1) : 3.5 3.3 3.5 3.4 3.5 
			 University of East Anglia 9.6 11.5 7.3 12.7 5.3 
			  Against benchmark( 1) : 13.8 13.0 12.0 11.7 11.2 
			 (1) The benchmark is a sector average which is adjusted for each institution to take into account the following factors: subject of study, qualifications on entry and age on entry. The benchmarks can be used to show how a university is performing compared to the sector as a whole, and also helps to determine whether a meaningful comparison can be drawn between two or more universities.  Source: Performance Indicators in Higher Education, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). 
		
	
	The non-completion rates tabled are not broken down by department or faculty. However, a sector-wide non-continuation rate is provided for each year, which is broken down by subject of study. The non-continuation rate is the proportion of entrants to full-time first degree courses who are no longer in higher education after one year of study. The rates for young entrants are shown in Table 2.
	
		
			  Table 2: Proportion of young entrants to full-time first degree courses who are no longer in higher education after one year of study 
			  Percentage 
			   1999/2000  2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04 
			 Medicine, dentistry and veterinary science 2.0 2 2.4 1.8 2.0 
			 Subjects allied to medicine 6.3 6 5.9 6.4 7.7 
			 Biological sciences(1) (8)6.9 (8)6 (8)6.1 (8)7.1 7.3 
			 Physical sciences(1) (8)— (8)— (8)— (8)— 6.1 
			 Agriculture and related subjects 6.8 7 11.4 7.5 8.3 
			 Mathematical sciences(2) (9)9.8 (9)8 (9)8.4 (9)9.4 5.5 
			 Computer sciences(2) (9)— (9)— (9)— (9)— 10.3 
			 Engineering and technology 10.1 9 8.9 10.0 10.1 
			 Architecture, building, planning 9.6 8 10.2 11.1 10.0 
			 Social studies(3) (10)6.9 (10)6 (10)6.4 (10)7.0 7.2 
			 Law(3) (10)— (10)— (10)— (10)— 6.2 
			 Librarianship, information sciences(4) (11)6.9 (11)8 (11)8.2 n/a n/a 
			 Business and administrative studies(4, 5) (11)— (11)— (11)— (12)8.8 8.8 
			 Mass communications and documentation(5) n/a n/a n/a (12)— 8.5 
			 Humanities(6) (13)5.9 (13)5 (13)5.7 n/a n/a 
			 Languages(6, 7) (13)— (13)— (13)— (14)6.3 6.3 
			 Historical and philosophical studies(7) n/a n/a n/a (14)— 5.9 
			 Creative arts and design 8.7 8 8.3 8.2 8.4 
			 Education 8.6 8 8.1 8.0 7.5 
			 Combined subjects 8.8 8 8.2 14.3 13.5 
			 All subjects 7.8 7 7.3 7.8 7.7 
			 n/a = not applicable. (1) One figure was provided for Biological and Physical Sciences until 2003/04. (2) One figure was provided for Mathematical and Computer Sciences until 2003/04. (3) One figure was provided for Social Studies and Law until 2003/04. (4) One figure was provided for Librarianship, information Sciences and Business and administrative studies until 2002/03. (5) One figure was provided for Business and administrative studies and Mass communications and documentation in 2002/03. (6) One figure was provided for Languages and Humanities until 2002/03. (7) One figure was provided for Languages and Historical and Philosophical Studies in 2002/03.  Notes: 1. Figures for 2000/01 are available only to the nearest integer. 2. There is a break in the time series between academic years 2001/02 and 2002/03 because the subjects' JACS codings were changed in 2002/03.  Source: Performance Indicators in Higher Education, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Maintenance Enforcement

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the administrative costs of establishing the system for confiscating passports as a means of enforcing child maintenance, proposed in Sir David Henshaw's report, 'Recovering Child Support: Routes to Responsibilities';
	(2)  what discussions he has had with other government departments and agencies on the establishment of the system for confiscating passports as a means of enforcing child maintenance, proposed in Sir David Henshaw's report, 'Recovering Child Support: Routes to Responsibility';
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the  (a) number and  (b) proportion of non-resident parents whose passports might be confiscated as a means of enforcing child maintenance should the proposal in Sir David Henshaw's report be implemented.

James Plaskitt: Officials have been involved in extensive discussion with the Home Office, the Department for Constitutional Affairs and the Identity and Passport Service concerning this proposal. Officials are continuing to work with other departments to assess the costs of various options associated with this proposal.
	It is intended that the surrender of passports will be applicable only in cases where the non-resident parent has wilfully failed to pay child maintenance, and where most other methods of enforcement have proven to be ineffective. Work is ongoing to estimate the number of cases where this may impact.

Child Support Agency

Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when the September and October child support payments due to the parent with care in the case with Child Support Agency reference 324807264125 will be paid; what the reasons are for the length of time which has been taken to pass this money to the parent with care; and what steps the Agency is taking to ensure that such delays do not occur in the future.

James Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to my hon. Friend with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 9 January 2007:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the September and October child support payments due to the parent with care Child Support Agency reference 324807264125 will be paid; what the reasons are for the length of time which has been taken to pass this money to the parent with care; and what steps the Agency is taking to ensure that such delays do not occur in the future.
	As details about individual cases are confidential I have written to you separately about this case.

Consultants

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total value has been of the contracts that his Department has held with  (a) ER consultants and  (b) Praesta in each of the last three years; and which Ministers have made use of their services.

Jim Murphy: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 8 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 1624-25W.

Deduction of Earnings

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's policy is on deduction of earnings orders when the parents concerned subsequently make voluntary child support arrangements.

James Plaskitt: If the parent with the care of the children subsequently decides to make private child support arrangements with the non-resident parent the Child Support Agency will cease acting on her behalf. In these circumstances the Agency will no longer attempt to collect ongoing maintenance but if arrears are outstanding it may decide to continue to collect them through a deduction from earnings order. However, the Agency will continue to act on behalf of a parent with care who is receiving income support or income-based Jobseeker's allowance.
	If any parent with care indicates that she wants to make her own payment arrangements with the non-resident parent, known as 'maintenance direct', the Agency will consider whether the proposed arrangement is more appropriate or more likely to ensure a positive maintenance outcome than a deduction from earnings order. It will also take account of any outstanding maintenance arrears.
	In making a decision on whether to continue to collect ongoing maintenance or arrears through a deduction from earnings order, the Agency will take account of the welfare of any children involved, the circumstances of the non-resident parent concerned and the reason why the deduction from earnings order was initially imposed.

Household Incomes

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of how many families living in  (a) England,  (b) Wales and  (c) Scotland receive more than half of their gross income in cash benefits and tax credits.

Jim Murphy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Leslie Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.

Jobcentre Plus

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the recent performance of Jobcentre Plus in dealing with claimants; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Leslie Strathie, dated 9 January 2007:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what assessment he has made on the performance of Jobcentre Plus in dealing with claimants. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus employs around 71,000 staff dealing with some 235 million contacts from customers per year. Every working day, we conduct 36,000 work-focused interviews, and process over 15,000 new benefit claims. Through our website, we enable customers to access details of around 300,000 job vacancies.
	We are part way through a process to transform the way the business operates to provide improved labour market and benefit services more efficiently and with fewer staff. In our new offices, which are already in place across most of the country, customers experience a more welcoming and professional environment and our Contact Centres and e-channels provide greater flexibility in the ways customers can contact us. I am pleased to say that, this year, Contact Centre performance has consistently exceeded our internal target of answering 90 percent of calls. from customers. In addition, the vast majority of people contacting Jobcentre Plus to make a new claim for benefit can expect to be called back within 36 hours (currently 86 per cent.), helping to ensure that people receive the financial and work-focused support that they need at the earliest possible opportunity.
	Following pilots of a new Standard Operating Model in North Lincolnshire and Central London, Jobcentre Plus has begun to roll-out changes to its delivery model to improve further our customer service. Changes to be introduced over the coming months include: an 0800 number for new claims customers, to replace the 0845 service; and a single call to the contact centre to claim benefit.
	Jobcentre Plus must make more progress in the time taken to process new benefit claims and we have a new target for 2006-07 called the Actual Average Clearance Time target. A dedicated Customer Experience Improvement Team has been put in place to drive performance improvements in this area.
	Performance on Income Support (IS) and Incapacity Benefit (IB) clearance times has shown some improvement this operational year and we are currently on track to hit the IB element of this target. We aim to build on the improvements seen so far during the remainder of the year.

Jobcentre Plus

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many personal advisers are employed by Jobcentre Plus; and at what total cost;
	(2)  how many Jobcentre Plus staff work in  (a) benefit claims and processing,  (b) provision of welfare to work advice to claimants and  (c) regulation of external providers of welfare to work services; and at what total cost in each case.

Jim Murphy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Leslie Strathie, dated 9 January 2007
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking; how many personal advisors are employed by Jobcentre Plus; and at what total cost, and how many Jobcentre Plus staff work in  (a) benefit claims and processing,  (b) provision of welfare to work advice to claimants and  (c) regulation of external providers of welfare to work services; and at what total cost in each case. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The latest month for which actual information relating to these questions is available is September 2006. The relevant figures are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Category  Staffing levels (Full Time Equivalents) (September 2006)  Total Cost (September 2006) (£ million) 
			 Personal Adviser Service(1) 9,064 20.896 
			 Benefit Claims and Processing(2) 29,629 51.974 
			 Welfare to Work advice(3) 919 2.465 
			 Regulation of external providers(4) 471 1.349 
			 1. The personal adviser service includes disability employment support; new client advice; restart/ fresh start advice; new deal lone parents/ partners; new deal for young people/25+/50+; work focussed interviews lone parents and incapacity benefit; and incapacity benefit caseload activity. 2. Benefit claims and processing includes staff in both processing sites and contact centres involved in processing all Jobcentre Plus benefits; staff in customer service outlets offering benefit advice including financial assessors; and income support, jobseeker's allowance, incapacity benefit and social fund management. 3. Welfare to work advice includes services provided by staff in disability services; action team initiatives; employment zones; and new deal for disabled people. It does not include staff involved in Jobsearch review or Jobseeker Direct. 4. External providers include third party provision management of both ESF and non ESF.

Mesothelioma

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether relatives of an employee who has developed mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos on the employee's work overalls are treated by his Department as eligible for  (a) industrial injuries disablement benefit,  (b) compensation under the Pneumoconiosis Etc. (Workers' Compensation) Act 1979 and  (c) and other compensation.

Jim Murphy: It has been an underlying principle of the Industrial Injuries Scheme since its introduction in 1948 that benefit under the scheme should be payable only to people injured or disabled as a result of their work and not the population at large. The purpose of Pneumoconiosis Etc. (Workers Compensation) Act 1979 is to provide compensation for sufferers of certain dust-related diseases (or their dependants on their behalf) who are unable to claim damages from employers. No payments have been made to the relatives under either scheme where they have exposure to asbestos from washing overalls and the Department operates no other schemes under which compensation would be payable.
	We have asked officials to carry out a review of the current Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit Scheme. The present scheme may no longer meet the needs of our modern society. We will look at all aspects of the scheme, but have not yet looked in any detail at any particular component of the scheme. We will however be looking at all options for the future and we intend publishing a consultation document in early 2007. I have met the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (MAC) and discussed the issue of the review of the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit scheme. MAC has also recently met with the miners group of MPs and issues around asbestos related diseases were discussed.
	On 20 July 2006, the Secretary of State announced measures to speed up the handling of claims for people suffering from mesothelioma and committed to having a full dialogue with interested parties. As part of that dialogue, we recently undertook a consultation exercise that ended on 23 November. The Department is now looking carefully at all suggestions in developing options for action.

Mesothelioma

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much in benefits specifically related to mesothelioma claims has been clawed back through the Compensation Recovery Unit in the last 12 months  (a) in the UK,  (b) in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham and  (c) in Dagenham constituency.

Jim Murphy: In the 12 months up to November 2006 a total of £4,743,502.99 has been recovered in respect of benefits paid in mesothelioma cases in Great Britain and £18,756.46 in Northern Ireland. Information is not available at local authority or constituency level.
	The rationale behind compensation recovery is twofold. Firstly it ensures that the taxpayer (via the benefit system) does not subsidise the costs arising from a compensator's actions. Secondly it ensures that an injured person is not compensated twice for the same need, once via the benefit system and again via the compensation payment. This is achieved by an offset mechanism within the scheme, which allows the compensator to reduce the compensation by some or all of the benefit repaid.
	Legislation to exempt payments made to former employees of Turner and Newall (and associated companies) suffering from asbestos-related diseases from the scheme is currently being brought forward. The exemption is being made due to the unique nature of these cases. Payments are being made from two Trust Funds set up for the sole purpose of meeting asbestos liabilities. Due to the insolvent position of the parent American company-however-the Trust will not meet the claims in full.
	Operating the compensation recovery scheme in these cases would further reduce payments to those suffering from asbestos-related diseases. The exemption does not breach either of the fundamental principles of the scheme as the finite amount to be paid out has already been established and the sufferers will only receive a small portion of their gross compensation awards.

Personal Capability Assessments

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of personal capability assessments were finalised using LiMA software in 2006-07; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: Between January and 22 December 2006, 88 per cent. of all personal capability reports were finalised by the LiMA software.

Personal Capability Assessments

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of personal capability assessments have been overturned on appeal; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: In 2005-06, there were around one million personal capability assessments and around 23,000, or two per cent., were overturned on appeal.

Personal Capability Assessments

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what monitoring there has been of the LiMA system's efficiency; and what proposals there are for audits of the LiMA system.

Anne McGuire: Since its inception, LiMA has, and continues to be, under constant review and improvement.
	A steering group considers feedback from a number of sources, including users, medical quality auditors and the Department for Work and Pensions. All system changes and improvements are made in consultation with the Department and are thoroughly tested through a documented process before being released. There have been six system updates during 2006 and the process of system development will continue throughout 2007.
	Medical Services has a robust externally validated audit system. The work of every doctor is regularly audited to ensure that medical reports produced using LiMA meet defined quality and professional standards.

Personal Capability Assessments

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the impact of the integration of LiMA into the personal capability assessment on the efficient provision of benefits; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: LiMA is a tool used by assessing doctors that checks on the completeness and consistency of their advice. LiMA does not have an impact other than to provide consistent, legible reports.
	The assessment of impact is on the quality of the medical report, and is, therefore, a function of medical quality audit.

Personal Capability Assessments

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what effect the LiMA system has had on the revised personal capability assessment in relation to the  (a) suggested changes to the increase in mental health descriptors and activities and  (b) suggested changes to the physical health descriptors and activities.

Anne McGuire: LiMA is programmed on the basis of the current personal capability assessment (PCA) and descriptors. Before the revised PCA is implemented, the LiMA system will be completely reprogrammed to take into account the changes to both the physical and mental function assessments. This reprogramming cannot start until the regulations governing the revised PCA have been laid.
	Reports based on the revised PCA, which are being used for evaluation purposes, are completed manually by Atos Origin healthcare professionals. But in justifying their choice of revised descriptors, the healthcare professionals are drawing on their expertise as disability analysts and on their familiarity with the up-to-date consensus of medical opinion that underpins the LiMA system.

Poverty

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the effect on  (a) child poverty,  (b) pensioner poverty and  (c) working age poverty of abolishing council tax for all those households under £8,000 income per year using existing estimates of council tax benefit take-up rates; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: Assuming, as is the convention, a threshold of 60 per cent. of contemporary median income as the measure of low income, then abolishing council tax for benefit units with annual income of less than £8,000 would:
	have no statistically significant impact on the proportion of children in relative poverty;
	lift around 60,000 pensioners before housing costs, or around 100,000 pensioners after housing costs, out of relative poverty; and
	lift around 40,000 working age adults before housing costs, or around 20,000 working age adults after housing costs, out of relative poverty.
	This is without taking account of any measures that might be taken in view of the reduced revenue flowing into local government.

Redundancy

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures he has introduced to assist people over 55 years who have been  (a) made redundant and  (b) made redundant for more than one year to find alternative employment.

Jim Murphy: We work with employer and partner organisations to help people who have been made redundant access a range of services aimed at helping them find alternative employment. The help provided will vary depending upon particular needs, not the age group of individuals, or the period of unemployment following redundancy. Typically, this involves the provision of information, advice and guidance about jobs and how best to secure alternative employment. In the case of large-scale redundancies that have a significant impact on the local labour market, additional help, for example, skills transfer analysis and job-focussed training may be provided through the Rapid Response Service. This help is not age-related but it is time-bound to 12 weeks before and 12 weeks following someone being made redundant.

Winter Fuel Payment

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many qualifying former UK residents living in  (a) Greece,  (b) Spain,  (c) Italy,  (d) Malta,  (e) Cyprus and  (f) Portugal have been in receipt of the winter fuel payments allowance in each year since 1997; and at what cost to public funds.

James Purnell: Since 2002, following discussions with the European Commission about the effect of Community law, winter fuel payments are made to eligible former UK residents living elsewhere in the European Economic Area or Switzerland provided they qualified for a winter fuel payment before leaving the UK. Although in some cases payments may be made for years before 2002, a separate breakdown of payments for the earlier years is not available. Information from 2002-03 is in the following tables.
	
		
			  Greece 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2002-03 65 11 
			 2003-04 150 26 
			 2004-05 295 51 
			 2005-06 480 85 
		
	
	
		
			  Spain 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2002-03 5,165 808 
			 2003-04 10,390 1,625 
			 2004-05 17,010 2,754 
			 2005-06 21,355 3,486 
		
	
	
		
			  Italy 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2002-03 95 16 
			 2003-04 200 33 
			 2004-05 415 75 
			 2005-06 590 106 
		
	
	
		
			  Malta 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2004-05 265 38 
			 2005-06 415 69 
		
	
	
		
			  Cyprus 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2004-05 1,395 188 
			 2005-06 2,180 349 
		
	
	
		
			  Portugal 
			  £000 
			   Payments made  Cost 
			 2002-03 105 17 
			 2003-04 255 43 
			 2004-05 475 80 
			 2005-06 720 120 
			  Notes: 1. The figures for the years 2002-03 and 2003-04 include only automated payments. These account for the great majority of payments made. Figures for clerical payments made in these years are not available broken down by country. However clerical payments are included in the figures from 2004-05. 2. Malta and Cyprus joined the European Union and therefore became part of the European Economic Area in May 2004. Winter fuel payments could be paid to eligible former UK residents living in these countries from winter 2004-05. The figures for winter 2004-05 include some payments made for earlier years where entitlement had been established but not paid prior to leaving the UK. 3. Figures for payments made are rounded to the nearest five and figures for costs are rounded to the nearest 1,000.